


Star Wars Episode IX (as it could be)

by JediBatman



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Canon Universe, Canon-Typical Violence, Established Relationship, F/M, James Bond References, Slight Canon Divergence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2019-12-15
Packaged: 2020-07-12 10:06:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 31
Words: 77,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19944394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JediBatman/pseuds/JediBatman
Summary: Despite the death of Luke Skywalker, the Resistance and their allies continue their struggle against the First Order, managing to fight back.But after obtaining enemy classified intel, the Resistance realize the First Order have a dangerous plan to win the war and conquer the Galaxy, making all their efforts futile.Only the use of the mythical Jedi Artifact and a bold and daring plan by Poe Dameron can neutralize the First Order plans and free the Galaxy for good.





	1. Synopsis of TLJ (as it could be)

**Author's Note:**

> Last year, I wrote my own version of the Last Jedi (and I had a lot of fun doing it!) and published it here as: “The Last Jedi (as it could be).” Needless to say, it greatly differs from the movie.
> 
> This story is a sequel to the fan-fiction and not the movie. Despite this, it treats Rogue One and SW:Episodes 1-7 as canon. 
> 
> Chapter One in this story is the synopsis of the fan-fiction Episode 8 (if you want to read the full story skip the chapter and go straight for it).
> 
> Enjoy reading and May the Force be with you!

After the destruction of Starkiller base, the First Order send General Hux with an armada of capital ships to attack the main Resistance base in D'qar. Poe Dameron talks with Hux, tells him to go to hell, and jumps to hyperspace. Hux orders an attack but the results are poor and the Resistance troops escape.

Back to Raddus, the Resistance flagship, Poe meets Finn who has just recovered from his coma. He also meets his long term girlfriend Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo, and they have some intimate moments together.

In Supremacy, the First Order flagship, Supreme Leader Snoke scolds Kylo Ren for killing his father himself. According to Snoke, Kylo should have delegated the task like a true commander. Afterwards, Snoke orders both Hux and Ren to locate the Resistance.

In Alch-To, Luke Skywalker is touched by Rey's kindness and determination and agrees to help her learn the ways of the Force. 

The First Order locate and attack the Resistance, destroying the starfighter hangar bays and the Raddus bridge killing most senior officers. Leia Organa survives but she is in a coma. 

After the attack is over, Amilyn Holdo takes command of the Resistance and makes Dameron her right-hand man. Together, they make a plan to train, disperse, and reorganize the surviving Resistance members. 

Meanwhile, Rose Tico analyzes the enemy actions and realizes they used hyperspace tracking technology to locate them and informs Finn, Poe, and Amilyn. As a temporary measure, the Resistance develop decoys to fool the enemy tracking system.

In Alch-To, Rey learns Luke's father was Darth Vader. She panics and draws her lightsaber, leading to a duel that ends when Luke uses a Force projection to fool and disarm her. Bruised and defeated, Rey sleeps in the open. Yoda's spirit visits Luke and advises him to give Rey a second chance.

Leia wakes up from her coma and contacts Maz Kanata. Maz tells the Resistance there is a former First Order scientist hidden in Canto Bight who has developed cloaking technology that will help them escape. Using a repaired starfighter Poe and Finn go to find him.

Kylo Ren has an offer for Hux. They will assassinate Snoke and he will become Supreme Leader. Hux will become Supreme Commander of all armed forces of the First Order. Hux accepts the offer, and they agree to a plan of action.

In Canto Bight, Poe and Finn locate the scientist, and they obtain the cloaking technology. Unfortunately, a group of First Order agents led by Captain Phasma also locate the scientist and assassinate him. Fortunately, Finn and Poe had left before Phasma and return to Raddus without incident.

Supremacy jumps from hyperspace the moment the cloaked Resistance transports leave Raddus. Realizing the danger, Amilyn stays behind to ram Raddus to the enemy flagship. A powerful voice in her head tells her to aim for a particular hangar full of starfighters ready to launch. Conveniently, the hangar's outer door is open making it more vulnerable to a ramming attack ... just like Hux had planned.

The voice in Amilyn's head was Kylo Ren's who used the Force to manipulate her. Amilyn crashes Raddus to the hangar destroying the fighters inside it and Snoke's throne room that was conveniently located next to it. Snoke dies ... just like Hux and Ren had planned. It is unclear whether Amilyn died in the explosion or escaped at the last moment.

Back in Alch-To, Luke gives Rey the ancient Jedi texts and wishes her good luck. He is not coming with her though. He tells her he will reappear when the time is right, but his reappearance will be his last. With tears in her eyes, Rey heads to Crait, where the Resistance is hidden.

Kylo Ren is officially the new Supreme Leader and Armitage Hux the new Supreme Commander. They search for the Resistance and locate them in Crait, barricaded and waiting for the First Order to attack.

After some fighting, the First Order blow the Resistance base door up and are about to enter the base ... when Luke Skywalker reappears! After saluting Leia, Chewie, C-3PO, Finn, Rey, and Poe, the Jedi Master exits the base to face the enemy. 

Using the Force Luke scares dozens of First Order stormtroopers who retreat in panic. Frustrated, Hux retaliates using heavy artillery but it has no effect on the Jedi Master. 

Kylo Ren decides to interfere and orders the six Knights of Ren to follow him. They draw their lightsabers and try to hit the Jedi Master, only to realize he is not on Crait, and they only see an astral projection. They laugh at his cowardice until Luke Skywalker uses the Force to grab two of them and kill them with their own lightsabers. 

The remaining four Knights of Ren retreat and Luke Skywalker immobilizes Kylo Ren. He orders Hux to approach or else he will use the Force to kill both him and Kylo Ren. He offers them a deal: they will let the remnants of the Resistance escape in exchange for their lives. Both men have no choice but to agree. 

The last two hundred members of the Resistance board the Millennium Falcon and other small spaceships and leave. Luke salutes Leia for the last time. The moment the Millennium Falcon jumps to hyperspace, Luke's astral projection vanishes. Back in Alch-To, his body evaporates while his spirit becomes one with the Force. His final words are:

“I am one with the Force ... and the Force is with me!”


	2. Charting a New Course

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo Ren and Hux discuss the new developments for the First Order and how to keep their troops in line. Kylo Ren mentions the Artifact.
> 
> Leia Organa and Poe Dameron discuss about their losses and about their plans for the future of the Resistance and the Galaxy.
> 
> Meanwhile, a member of the Resistance wakes up and realizes she is a prisoner of the First Order.

The lightsaber that almost touched Kylo Ren's neck fell to the ground, deactivated. The Supreme Leader looked at it in disbelief and turned to look at the cloaked figure of Luke Skywalker standing five meters away from him. To his astonishment, the figure faded until it vanished into thin air.

“What is the matter?” Armitage Hux asked. “How did he do that?” He looked at the lightsaber hovering above his head. To his relief, it fell to his lap deactivated as well.

“Astral projection,” Ren replied. “He projected the image of himself from a remote part of the Galaxy. He also projected his Force powers.”

“I didn't know the Force could be so strong,” Hux admitted.

“Not even the Death Star compares to its strength,” Kylo Ren said. “Not even the Starkiller Base.”

Supreme Commander Hux felt insulted by the remark, but he let it slide. After all, he had just seen with his own eyes the Force was much stronger than he had thought. 

Both men stood up. Ren picked his lightsaber up and used the Force to grab the ones belonging to the two slain Knights of Ren. Soon, First Order stormtroopers would take their bodies and arrange for a proper funeral. In addition, specialized stormptroopers had already entered the abandoned Resistance base and were examining it for every piece of information the First Order could use.

Hux and Ren didn't bother themselves with those trivialities. Thirty minutes later, both of them were back onboard Supremacy, sitting on a small soundproof conference room — the same one they had used for their conspiracy against Snoke — eager to continue their plan to fully control the First Order.

“For starters,” Hux said checking his datapad, “we have lost the Resistance. All of their transports, including the Millennium Falcon, have jumped to hyperspace.”

“That was the deal we made with Skywalker to let both of us live,” Kylo Ren remarked. “And besides only two hundred of them are still alive.”

“It doesn't matter how many of them survived Ren!” Hux shouted. “They know about the loss of Starkiller … because they blew it up! It is a given they will share that information with the rest of the Galaxy.”

Kylo Ren thought for a few seconds. “How many planets surrendered without a fight because we bluffed we would blow them up with a superweapon we no longer had?”

“About a dozen. That is the main reason we kept the loss a secret … even from most of our officers and almost all of our troops. I had no illusions the rest of the Galaxy would eventually find out but the more we kept the secret, the more planets we would bluff to surrender without a fight.”

“There was nothing we could do,” Ren said. “Remember, Luke Skywalker had lightsabers on our necks.”

Hux took a deep breath, trying to keep calm. “I know. OK, it was a setback we didn't expect. Back to business now. The moment our own people learn we lost Starkiller, they will ask questions about the competence of their senior leadership.”

“That is true,” Ren said. “Moreover, our enemies will fight back and many occupied regions might revolt against us. We don't have a superweapon to blackmail them into submission. Many of our officers might find the situation futile, and they might be tempted to surrender or even switch sides.”

“This is not a situation for the faint of heart … or the unloyal,” Hus said.

“Well said Hux. We must ensure every senior officer is fully loyal and obedient to us.” Both men looked at each other in a meaningful way. 

Kylo Ren and Hux spent the next minutes analyzing all parameters. Soon, they agreed to a specific plan of action of how to deal with uncooperative officers. 

“My only point of concern remaining was Luke Skywalker,” Hux said. 

“Don't worry about Skywalker Hux,” Ren said. “He is dead as we speak. Nobody can survive such a powerful Force use. It depletes your body and your mind.”

“It's good to hear that,” Hux said.

“There is a thing that concerns me though,” Ren said.

“Which is?”

“The astral projection is ancient Jedi knowledge, considered lost in time. Somehow Luke Skywalker rediscovered it. What if he has discovered the other lost knowledge? What if he knows about the Artifact?”

“The Artifact?”

Inside the Millennium Falcon, Poe Dameron stood up from the pilot's seat and gestured to Chewie. The wookie looked at him, a bit puzzled.

“I am going to see the General,” he said. Chewie nodded. Members of the Resistance looked at him. Most of them stood in attention as he passed next to them, but he gestured for them to sit down. Poe Dameron had never been a man who enjoyed pomp and ceremony.

A few seconds later, Poe was in front of the cabin where the General was. Finn and Rey were sitting next to the cabin door trying to comfort each other about the recent events. 

“How is it buddy? Rey?” Poe asked. Both of them smiled.

“We'll manage Poe,” Finn replied. “We lost a battle, yes. But we shall win the war.”

Rear Admiral Poe Dameron — Leia had just promoted him to senior officer — smiled. Despite the losses, they hadn't lost their spirit. He looked around him, checking every man and every woman. All of them had determination written on their faces. He nodded at them and knocked at the cabin door. 

“This is Dameron,” he said upon knocking. He heard the door unlocking. Poe opened the door, entered the cabin, closed it, and locked it again. Leia Organa was sitting on the bed. 

“Have a seat Poe,” she said the moment he locked the door.

“Thank you, Leia,” Poe replied. He always called her General or General Organa in front of others. But both preferred to ignore formalities when they were alone.

Poe looked at the General. Her eyes were red. She had spent the previous hours crying. 

“None is watching us Leia,” Poe said in a quiet voice. It was as if she waited for his reassurance to cry again. Tears fell from her eyes, a sight she believed none in the Resistance should see. You can't demoralize your people with your tears, she had always insisted.

“Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, my son Ben, Admiral Ackbar, Amilyn ...” A tear fell from Poe's right eye when Leia mentioned Amilyn.

“I know you loved her,” she said hugging him. “She was always so fond of you, you know. Even before you became a couple.”

“I haven't lost hope Leia. She could have survived Raddus. Maybe there was a spare escape pod that worked. Maybe … just maybe ...”

“I really hope so Poe,” Leia replied. “But I don't know if that is for the better,” she continued. Another tear fell from Poe's eye. He knew what the General meant. During the Galactic Civil war, Darth Vader had captured and tortured her and the same thing had happened to him in the hands of Kylo Ren. If Amilyn was alive … Poe didn't want to continue his thoughts. 

“Ben is still alive Leia,” Poe said. “Maybe he ...” Leia shot him a hard look.

“My son Ben killed the love of my life, the man I had loved so much for the past thirty years … his own father!” 

Poe Dameron closed his eyes. He remembered that night in Jakku when the First Order had captured him after a brave but futile struggle. He never told Leia he had shot Ben Solo during the fight, only for Ben to use the Force to block the projectile. Would Leia ever be understanding if he told her he had tried to kill her own son? He decided not to press the issue.

“My brother Luke! My husband Han! My son! I really want to believe Ben will somehow return … but I have no hope left!” Poe gently touched her hand.

“I have lost everyone Poe,” she said still in tears. Poe gave her a hug.

“I am still here Leia,” he replied. “I am your most trusted officer, and I am also your friend.”

“Yes Poe,” she said with a warm smile. “You are my best friend.”

The discussion soon turned to more professional matters both to keep their minds away from personal tragedies and because both Leia and Poe were Resistance officers. The two most significant achievements of the Resistance had been Dameron's destruction of Starkiller Base and Holdo's ramming attack against Supremacy. Both attacks had caused heavy losses to the First Order and could be further exploited for their purposes.

“The sooner our allies learn about Starkiller, the better,” Poe said. “I know you have radioed them already...”

“But listening to me in person will be more convincing. I know. What else Poe?”

“Amilyn's attack was very successful. What if we can replicate that success? What if under certain circumstances an allied spaceship can ram and damage or even destroy one of their capital ships?”

“Amilyn would be proud of you Poe. And so am I. Even in our darkest hour, you find ideas and solutions!”

A few minutes later, Poe exited Leia's cabin and closed the door. He observed Finn and Rey sitting next to each other. Rey was reading something from an old and dusty book, probably one of the ancient Jedi texts Luke Skywalker had entrusted her. They appeared to be very fond of each other, just like him and Amilyn.

Amilyn! She and Poe had been a beloved couple for three years. Poe closed his eyes, remembering her saving his life on Jakku. If she was still alive she deserved all the help he could give her. 

“What has happened to you Amilyn?” he asked himself.

A few days earlier … 

While evacuating cruiser Raddus using transports, Supremacy suddenly jumped from hyperspace very close to the Resistance. To give the troops time to leave Raddus, Amilyn chose to stay behind and ram the cruiser to the enemy flagship.

Inside Raddus, Amilyn Holdo pressed some buttons and the cruiser turned to face the Supremacy. She aimed for the bridge when suddenly, a very powerful thought pierced her mind. “Aim for the hangar. There are starfighters there ready to launch and hit the Resistance transports.” Realizing the risk, she steered Raddus to hit the hangar bay, which as she could observe had its doors wide open, locked the controls, and pressed the acceleration button. 

Amilyn Holdo was no coward. If she had to sacrifice her life to save others, she would do so without a second thought. She had volunteered to pilot Raddus with that thought in mind. On the other hand, she was neither stupid nor suicidal. If she could escape death without compromising her mission, she would do exactly that. Fortunately, there was a spare escape pod for her, and she rushed to the Raddus hangar to enter it.

It took three tries for her to start the pod engine. In her third try, the pod shot in space like a cannonball away from the destructive path of Raddus. Amilyn hoped none of the numerous First Order escort ships would shoot her down or capture her.

Amilyn ran out of luck three minutes after she escaped Raddus when an enemy Star Destroyer captured her using a tractor beam. Despite her best efforts, the beam was too strong, and she ended up a prisoner of war. 

A few days later Amilyn woke up. She was in a small dark cell tied on a chair. Both her arms and legs were chained. She closed her eyes. She could only remember the pod entering the hangar bay of a capital ship and herself fainting before she had the opportunity to do anything.

Sitting in front of a computer monitor, a man looked at Amilyn's face on the screen. It was a live transmission from a camera inside her cell. The moment he saw her opening her eyes, he picked up a telephone next to him and dialed a specific number.

“Inform the Supreme Leader,” the man said. “Prisoner JB-007 has just woken up.”


	3. A Jedi in Jakku

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe Dameron visits Finn and Rey in Jakku. Rey restarts her Jedi training. Finn uses his inside knowledge of the First Order to answer questions about their weaknesses.
> 
> On a personal level, Poe advices Finn and Rey not to hesitate to be together and remambers his own past with Amilyn Holdo and how they ended up together. 
> 
> Kylo Ren visits Amilyn in her cell. He is hostile and starts torturing her for information.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a huge 007 fan. For that reason, there will be some Bond references in this chapter. Just assume James Bond is also a fictional character in the Star Wars universe.

After the loss of D'qar and Crait bases plus the loss of all of their capital ships, the surviving members of the Resistance were dispersed to many different allied bases. As per Leia's orders, Poe Dameron visited them to check their morale, to encourage them to recruit new members for the Resistance and to improve relationships with allies.

His last stop in his journey was Jakku, the planet where Rey and Finn were hiding. His mission there was a bit more personal. 

It was still darkness when Rey woke up and got dressed for her daily training. She picked her backpack containing two canteens of water, some food bars, a holoprojector, a blaster pistol, some written notes of her, a radio, and her lightsaber.

She looked at Finn sleeping on the floor at the opposite part of the room. It always amazed her how fast everything had happened. It had only been two weeks since she had met Finn for the first time. They had fought against bandits and had evaded the First Order using the Millennium Falcon. And then ... meeting Han Solo and Chewie, getting captured by Kylo Ren, escaping, watching Han Solo die, training with Luke Skywalker ...

Luke Skywalker! The last Jedi Master had entrusted her with continuing the Jedi legacy. To help her, he had given her his personal notes and the ancient Jedi texts found in Alch-To. Rey read the texts daily, and she constantly took notes of them. Often, she read them during her breaks from lightsaber training.

Rey looked at the texts and the notes, neatly arranged next to her place of sleep. She couldn't understand everything with a first read, but she was constantly making progress. 

Rey looked at Finn for a final time and exited the walker. Her repursorlift scooter was there, waiting for her. 

After twenty minutes, Rey reached her destination, the huge hulk of a destroyed Imperial capital ship. The Rebel Alliance had shot it down during the battle of Jakku and thousands of scavengers — herself included — had looted it trying to take everything of value from it. Fortunately, after so many decades there was nothing left to steal so Rey had the entire spaceship for herself. 

Rey approached the hulk. There was a small opening she used to enter the spaceship. She had covered it with a piece of metal to keep the dust and the desert animals out. She was about to pick the piece up when an idea crossed her mind. She took two steps back, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and concentrated. 

It took her multiple attempts until her concentration reached the right level. After that, it was effortless. The piece of metal moved two meters to the right and Rey let it fall to the ground. Her bond with the Force was becoming stronger every day.

As soon as Rey entered the spaceship hulk, she used the Force again to put the piece of metal back to its original place. This time she succeeded with her first try.

After years of scavenging the spaceship Rey knew its interior by heart. She knew the ideal training area that had a lot of space and retained its cool temperature even during the hottest part of the day, a former internal hangar for Imperial Walkers that somehow received natural light during the day.

Rey put her backpack on the ground and removed her lightsaber and the hologram. She activated her lightsaber to low power mode used for training emitting a harmless glow that could not accidentally harm her.

After some preliminary stabbing, parring, and cutting moves, Rey activated the hologram projector. The familiar figure of Luke Skywalker appeared. 

“All Jedi students should know one thing,” the Jedi Master said. He had given her the projector to assist her in her training. “No matter how good you are as a swordfighter, it is your connection with the Force that makes all the difference. Close your eyes.” Rey did exactly that.

“Breathe! Inhale! Exhale! Good! Now do it again but this time concentrate on the Force." Rey did as told.

“Now use your lightsaber.” Rey did that and to her satisfaction, her moves had a fluidity, a grace, and an efficiency she would never be able to match without her connection to the Force.

Following Luke's instructions, Rey practiced for hours. She only stopped to get some rest, some food to eat, and some water to drink. 

After finishing with her lightsaber training, Rey opened her backpack and found the notes about the ancient Jedi texts. There was a wealth of information there, Jedi teachings and techniques Rey never suspected existed, ways to use the Force in such deadly ways she was scared to even read them, and last but not least Jedi devices that enhanced the power of their users.

The most well-known Jedi device was of course the lightsaber, a device capable of deflecting blaster bolts and cutting through metal as if it was paper. It was of course the iconic weapon of the Jedi.

In addition, the Force helped Jedi better operate conventional weapons of all kinds thus enhancing their lethality. Luke Skywalker himself had provided the best example: he had used the Force to accurately hit the Death Star exhaust port with proton torpedoes.

Most such devices were not Force augmented. They performed better only if their user had Force powers. There was a device though, that repeatedly appeared in the ancient texts that was both Force augmented and required a Force user to operate it.

Rey checked Skywalker's notebook. There was a sketch of the device and some notes about it. There was also a name.

“The Artifact. I wonder what it is.” 

It was early morning when Finn woke up. He stood up, rubbed his eyes and looked at Rey's place. She was not there. 

“More Jedi training,” the former stormtrooper thought. Rey would return at late afternoon or at night, and Finn would barely see her. He sighed. He admitted he missed her. Fortunately, that was something temporary because in a few days they would train together. 

In any case, defeating the First Order came first and everything else second. If Rey had to train herself, he had to accept that. After all, it could be the difference between life and death.

Besides, Finn liked the desert. It was vast, quiet, and peaceful, the exact opposite of a stormtrooper's life. For as long as he remembered himself, he had been in cramped spaceships, cramped walkers, and cramped buildings. It was good to be in the open for a change.

Finn holstered his pistol, picked up his backpack and two small barrels he would use to bring water from a well a few kilometers away. He also had to check the traps he and Rey had set up to capture desert animals. 

After one hour of walking, Finn reached the well and filled both barrels. There was no person in sight. It seemed that after the First Order attack on the planet, people had become too hesitant to move in the desert, something that suited him just fine. 

Upon his return, Finn checked the five traps scattered in various places in the desert. Two of them were empty but the rest contained rat-like creatures. Rey had ensured him they were not poisonous and in fact had a great taste. Finn was skeptical about both statements.

Three hours after his departure and while the heat was scorching, Finn returned to the small walker and put the food in a specialized solar cooker. It would be ready in a few hours.

“Time to work against my old masters,” he told himself. He picked up a datapad Poe Dameron had given him and turned it on. It contained hundreds of questions the Resistance and their allies had about the First Order. The questions ranged from the number of turbolasers capital ships had to the fuel reserves of transports. Finn read the questions, took notes and careful not to make spelling errors started typing them on the datapad.

It was night in Jakku. Rey had just returned after a long day of training and learning. Finn was waiting for her and so was Poe Dameron who had just arrived. After the necessary pleasantries, it was time to serve dinner. Finn had cooked the captured desert animals.

“It is actually tasty. You really know how to cook Finn,” Poe said, eating a rat-like animal. “What is its name?”

“A desert rat,” Rey said with a smile. Finn almost choked. 

“A what?” Finn asked.

“Hey buddy, it is still better than First Order food. Unless of course you are a General and have a personal chef," Poe Dameron said patting his back. 

“So how are things now?” Rey asked Poe.

“The good news: I am a Rear Admiral now, the second in command of the Resistance now.”

“Congratulations buddy!” Finn said with a smile. 

“And the bad ones?” Rey asked.

“The same as always. We have no spaceships, no ammo, no fuel, no people. We were one thousand people before the war started. Nowadays we are only two hundred plus two hundred more we send away days before we lost Raddus. But we still wait for the latter to make contact. And let's face it. I am a good officer but the main reason I became Rear Admiral is because we lost almost all of our senior leaders. Only Leia Organa is alive.”

“So what do we do now?” Finn asked.

“When we destroyed Starkiller, the First Order established an information blackout about the incident to save face and keep their enemies demoralized. But we have lifted the curtain. Leia Organa and I have already addressed allied leaders and more such meetings are to follow.”

“Do the meetings have any effect?” Rey asked.

“They do, but things take time. After all, the war started only a few days ago. The political and military leadership of the New Republic is gone. Its fleet is gone as well. The leaders we have addressed are not necessary legitimate ones and still need to assert their authority."

“Some leaders are afraid to commit to the fight. Others just want to maintain neutrality and let the rest take the burden. Others believe that the loss of Starkiller means the First Order is no longer a threat for them, so they don't care.”

“It will be a hard task for Leia Organa to convince them. So much work to do, and she has to face the additional burden of so many losses. She has lost so many people close to her: Han Solo, her son Ben...”

“He tortured me and killed his own father,” Rey said in an angry tone.

“Yes, but he is still her son,” Poe replied. 

“She also lost her brother Luke Skywalker,” Rey said. “And who else?”

“Amilyn Holdo. She was one of our best officers, and Leia's best friend and aide for more than thirty-five years.” Poe was almost crying when he mentioned her name. Finn patted him on the shoulder. Both he and Rey knew about his secret romantic relationship with the Vice Admiral.

“Thank you, Finn,” Poe said. 

The discussion soon turned to more technical and operational matters. Rey mentioned her Jedi training and the Artifact. Poe listened her very carefully.

A few minutes later, the dinner was over and it was time for sleep. Poe understood from the body language that Finn and Rey wanted to get closer but there was some hesitation, so he decided to nudge them in the right direction.

“I will sleep outside. I think you will need some privacy,” he said with a wink. Rey and Finn looked at each other, surprised. Had it been that obvious?

“Don't you think that because of the war ...” Rey said.

“Do you really think the dead will object Rey?” Poe asked. "They died for us to live and be happy, not sad and miserable.”

“Yes, but what if we get involved and ...” Finn asked.

“And one of you dies? And you won't be able to bear the loss? You will be sad anyway if the other person dies. But at least you will be less sad knowing that you were even for a short time together.” That seemed to convince them.

“I will sleep outside,” Poe said with a wink. “It is safe there and warm in the open.” He picked up his sleeping bag and tossed it to the desert.

“Goodnight Poe,” Rey and Finn said. They entered the damaged walker holding hands. 

It was dark and both of them were inexperienced lovers. But their enthusiasm more than compensated for that. And Poe's words had burst a dam in both of them allowing their passion to flow without restraint. Soon they were both naked on the floor on the small Rey's cot. 

Almost two hours later, Finn and Rey were laying on the cot trying to catch their breaths. There was a small window above their heads, and they could see the stars in the night sky.

“So many stars, so peaceful, so beautiful,” Rey said.

“It really gives perspective Rey,” Finn said. “And a reason to fight to make our Galaxy peaceful again.”

“We shall make it peaceful again Finn. No matter the cost, we shall win. But I think that for tonight ... we can have some fun!”

Finn smiled. “But of course Rey. After all, we should keep ... the morale high!”

Rey looked at him in mock disbelief. “What do you mean Mr. Finn?” she asked. Finn smiled in a coy smile.

They started again.

Outside the walker, Poe smiled. He could hear the sounds Finn and Rey made. “Congratulations Finn,” he whispered looking at the night sky while his thoughts returned to his past and his relationship with Amilyn.

The first time he had seen Amilyn, he was only ten years old, and she was thirty. It was an award ceremony for Rebel Alliance veterans — that meant his parents — and a gift ceremony for their children — that meant him. He was thrilled to be there because the four legends of the Resistance Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, Han Solo, and Chewie would be in attendance.

It was then when he saw a tall, blonde, slender, blue-eyed, and extremely beautiful woman named Amilyn Holdo enter the room. She was to be decorated for her participation in the battles of Endor and Jakku. She had been an anti-aircraft gunner in both battles, shooting down eight Imperial starfighters. 

The other thing he remembered was his brief discussion with Luke Skywalker. “I think you are the secret agent type,” the Jedi Master had told him, “so here is the right gift for you.” He gave him a digital disk containing a spy movie. Its title was “Dr. No” and its protagonist was a fictional spy named James Bond, his code name 007.

He hadn't talked to Amilyn that day — after all he was only ten — but the memory remained for the years to come. 

Nine years later, Poe Dameron was a cadet in the flight academy. By that time he had become a 007 enthusiast and had collected and seen all of his movies (“Thunderball” was his favorite). It was then when he saw Amilyn again.

Due to budget cuts, the New Republic had shortages in military instructors. To compensate for that, many Rebel Alliance veterans with experience volunteered to become unpaid instructors. Amilyn Holdo was one of them, her area of expertise anti-aircraft artillery.

This time they had talked. Poe had found her extremely attractive and her command of the subject combined with grace, politeness, and confidence made a striking impression on him. They had some friendly conversations outside the base but nothing came out of it. Both understood they liked each other but for the time being it was impossible. 

What had really impressed Poe had been the fact Amilyn was also a 007 fan, the only one he had ever met in his life. Her favorite movie was “You Only Live Twice.”

What Poe didn't know at the time was that Amilyn was not only training cadet pilots but also scouting. Leia Organa knew the First Order was getting stronger every day and suspected the New Republic would do nothing about that. They might have to take matters in their own hands and to do so they needed to recruit people willing to fight. When Amilyn gave a list of potential recruits to Leia, Poe's name had been on top of it.

It hadn't taken much effort to convince Poe to resign the New Republic Navy and join the Resistance. Corruption, complacency, endless bureaucracy, nepotism ... there were so many reasons to hate it. On the other hand, the Resistance offered him the opportunity to fly as much as he wanted and do meaningful work preserving the peace in the Galaxy. 

Three years before the war started, both Amilyn and Poe were officers in the Resistance. They had the opportunity to talk and interact with each other but things were still complicated, as all relationships between colleagues are. To make matters harder, Amilyn outranked him: he was a Captain, and she was a Vice Admiral.

In the end they had decided to make the decisive step. It was wonderful but also so stressful to try to keep a secret from everyone. Fortunately, Leia Organa interfered telling them basically the same things Poe had told Rey and Finn to encourage them. She also had arranged for Poe not to be directly under Amilyn's command so as to avoid any problems or rumors about their intimacy.

“I had the same dilemma with Han Solo,” she had told them. “I still regret I waited three years to tell him I love him.” A tear fell from her right eye. She still hadn't forgiven him for leaving her and herself for making him leave.

Three years passed. Poe And Amilyn had become a really beloved couple, admired by all who knew about them. They had so many things in common: their love for the Resistance, 007, common ideas and interests, and the ability to clearly and effectively communicate. 

Poe looked at the desert. He remembered when he had crashed on the desert sand and had barely managed to pull out. Amilyn had rushed to save him, and she had come just in time. 

The last thing Poe did before falling asleep was to quietly sing Amilyn's favorite song. It was the title song from from “You Only Live Twice”, her favorite James Bond film.

“You only live twice ... or so it seems!”

“One life for yourself ... and one for your dreams!”

Half a Galaxy away, Amilyn Holdo was sitting inside her cell, her arms and legs still tied on that awful and uncomfortable chair. She had just eaten a rather tasteless food — she really didn't know and didn't want to know what it was –. Despite this, she still hoped her beloved one was alive and free.

“Goodnight Poe wherever you are. Be safe!”

Suddenly the door opened. A tall man, dressed in black entered the cell. 

“Hello ... Admiral Holdo,” Kylo Ren said. Amilyn looked at him, surprised at the tone of the voice. There was something in his voice that alarmed her. It was contempt mixed with arrogance and hatred. How had her godson become like that?

“Ben? What are you doing here? What happened? Why ...” She didn't finish her question. Kylo Ren used the Force to choke her.

“Never call me Ben again! And don't play dumb to me,” he said with a menacing voice while he released his Force grip. “From now on … you will call me Supreme Leader Ren.”

Amilyn looked at him, pain and shock on her face. What had happened to the cute little boy young Ben had once been?

He looked at her in a menacing way. She thought of him torturing Poe Dameron and took a deep breath. Her troubles had just worsened.


	4. A New Day for the First Order

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hux realizes the only way to keep his officers in line is by replacing the competent ones with loyal and incompetent ones. 
> 
> Kylo Ren informs Hux about Holdo and how she can help them with false confessions.
> 
> Meanwhile, Phasma becomes Hux's lover and tries to keep her role in the destruction of Starkiller Base a secret from him.

As Supreme Commander, Armitage Hux had a lot of tasks to perform. He had to organize the occupational forces in the conquered planets and organize the First Order for its future military expansion. The loss of Starkiller meant they had to occupy planets the hard way by bombing their main population and military centers and sending entire divisions of stormtroopers. That meant a long and costly war of attrition, at least for the immediate future.  
As an intermediate step, Hux decided to only focus on specific planets. They would attack them and send emissaries to the rest warning they would suffer the same fate if they became hostile. 

In addition, groups of capital ships would patrol the main galactic trade routes capturing and destroying freighters and warships that belonged to hostile planetary systems. Granted, most freighters would detour or follow other ways — after all space is vast — but many of them would still become trophies for the First Order.

How many of the First Order senior officers could be trusted with such assignments? How many of them were independent thinkers and competent leaders who didn't need micromanagement but could stand on their own? 

On the other hand, the more independent and competent someone is, the more you are at risk. All successful mutinies start by competent officers. (Incompetent ones occasionally mutiny as well, but they usually fail due to their lack of skills). Promoting incompetent ones made you safer. They are harmless, and they know that due to their incompetence they can't survive without your support, therefore they are forced to be loyal. 

Unfortunately, by their very nature incompetent officers cannot be trusted with even relatively simple tasks and require constant micromanagement. The thought made Hux sigh. He would have to spend dozens of hours every week just to make certain they didn't accidentally shoot themselves on the foot.

Captain Phasma entered the room. She had a message from the Supreme Leader. Upon listening, Supreme Commander Hux was puzzled. Nevertheless, he and Phasma went to the cell block.

Amilyn looked at Kylo Ren, pain and shock on her face. What had happened to the cute child who liked eating her cookies?

“I am your godmother Ben.” The moment she mentioned his real name again, Kylo Ren Force chocked her, this time harder than before.

“What have I told you?” he asked. “I am no longer Ben Solo. My past is dead. I let it die or killed it myself. And you are an enemy! Don't make me treat you like my father.”

Amilyn didn't respond. She knew Kylo had killed Han Solo, his own father.

“I did not keep you alive because you are my godmother … or because you are the best friend of my mother. You are alive because whether you like it or not you are going to help me.”

“I think I already have Supreme Leader.” Her voice was cold and distant now. 

“Oh yes Admiral,” he said. “You rammed the one place in our flagship where our Supreme Leader was. How unfortunate to lose him that soon!” he said, not exactly in a sad voice. 

“I am sure your wise leadership will fix that,” she replied in an ironic tone.

Ren Force choked her again, this time barely letting her live. Amilyn had to take many deep breaths and cough many times till she recovered. “I would rather die than betray the Resistance and you know it!”

“I believe you,” Kylo Ren said. “But as I am certain you know, none can resist the mind probing abilities of the Force. Even your lover couldn't.”

Amilyn shot him an angry look. Her reward was another Force choking.

“Yes, I personally tortured Poe Dameron. He was thinking of you to gain strength. It worked for a time but as I said … none can defeat the Force!”

“Don't worry Admiral,” Ren said releasing his Force grip on her. “I won't go that far. I will only ask you to confirm some names. It doesn't matter whether you know them or not. It only matters whether you give the answers we want.” And with those words, he opened the door and exited the cell.

“Yes Supreme Leader?” Hux asked. Despite his annoyance, he kept his voice calm. He didn't want to show disagreement between him and the Supreme Leader in front of others. 

Ren looked at Phasma. She looked at him, then at Hux. He gave her a nod. Phasma stood in attention and saluted them.

“I shall see you later Phasma,“ Hux said. “In my quarters.”

“Yes, Supreme Commander,” she said and left.

Ren looked at him, knowing exactly what Hux meant. He smiled.

“Well, becoming Supreme Commander has its perks, doesn't it Hux?” he asked in an amused tone.

Hux permitted himself a smile. “One of the reasons I accepted your offer. But I assume our meeting is not about my mistress.” 

“I assume you have spent half a day finding excuses to sack senior officers,” Kylo Ren replied with a sardonic smile.

Hux looked at him, a thin smile on his face. Kylo Ren was inspired. After all it was Ren's plan that had caused the death of the previous Supreme Leader and made Hux Supreme Commander.

“What do you have for me Ren?”

“The Resistance officer who piloted the cruiser that rammed us. She will inform us about some traitors among our ranks.”

Hux gave Ren a knowing smile and removed his datapad from one of his pockets. He had made a list of people he wanted removed.

“Well,” Hux said, “I think the Starkiller base was an inside job. After all, the shields weren't deactivated by themselves.” Hux didn't know the true reason the shields were deactivated but that didn't matter to him at the moment. What really mattered was that six senior officers in his list could have done it and Amilyn Holdo would confirm whatever he wanted her to confirm. 

The door to Holdo's cell opened. Armitage Hux and Kylo Ren entered it. Amilyn recognized Hux from old intelligence photos. 

“Well, well, well!” Hux said in an ironic smile. “Amilyn Holdo, Organa's closest aide and adviser. I am sure you are going to help us a lot.”

Amilyn wanted to get up and slap him on the face, but she couldn't. Both her hands and legs were tied with cuffs and chains. Kylo Ren was about to Force choke her when Hux gently touched his shoulder.

“Don't bother,” he said. “I will handle that.” Ren lowered his hand and let his co-conspirator do his thing. He raised his datapad and searched its digital menu. When he found what he wanted, he pressed a button. Immediately, a strong electric current zapped Amilyn, and she screamed in agony and pain.

“It is either the Force or science … or both,” Hux said. “You will suffer anyway … unless you cooperate.”

Captain Gwen Phasma, head of security for Supremacy, exited the elevator and walked the three hundred steps separating her from General Hux's quarters. The ten heavily armed stormtroopers guarding the entrance stood in attention. The sergeant commanding them looked at Phasma and upholstered his datapad from his belt.

“Captain Phasma to see Supreme Commander Hux,” the sergeant said. A few seconds later, the heavy metallic door opened and Phasma was allowed to proceed. As soon as she passed through, the door closed behind her, and she was alone in a wide, well-lit corridor that led to another door. 

As soon as she reached the second door, Phasma removed her helmet and looked directly at a small device on the wall. It was a retina scanner capable of identifying a person's identity within milliseconds. Three seconds later, the door opened and Phasma was allowed in Armitage Hux's quarters.

No matter how many times she had been in his quarters, she was struck by the spaciousness, the luxury, and the good taste of the man he used them. While the stormtroopers' barracks were so cramped that forty people had to share eighty square meters, Supreme Commander Hux had eight hundred square meters just for himself. His quarters included everything: an office suite, an enormous bedroom, a huge bathroom that included a Jacuzzi, a private library that doubled as a cigar smoking area, a dining area, a private movie theater, and even a private kitchen where his trusted chef was on alert at all times. 

It always struck Phasma how contradictory the First Order was. Their propaganda endlessly accused the New Republic leaders for living in luxury while the people were hungry, yet the First Order leadership lived in such luxury even kings could only dream of. Even the security measures were not designed just for security but also to impress and intimidate the ones approaching the senior leaders. Nevertheless, Phasma was not that critical of such luxuries. After all, she benefited from them. 

“Welcome Gwen,” Hux said holding a glass of expensive whiskey. He had a satisfied smile on his face.

“Thank you Supreme Commander,” Phasma said in a resistant tone. 

“It is Armitage when we are the two of us, not Supreme Commander. After all, we are lovers. And since we are lovers...”

After the loss of Starkiller Base, Hux had sent Phasma to a mopping up operation against the D'qar Resistance base. Afterwards, he had sent her to a mission in Canto Bight to assassinate a scientist who had defected them. Upon her return he had asked her to become his lover. She had accepted both because she secretly loved him and because refusing the request of a General would mean a lot of trouble for her.

Becoming Hux's lover had a lot of benefits for Phasma. For starters, none would question her about her role in the destruction of Starkiller Base. Secondly, she had more influence and that made her job as a head of security for Supremacy easier. Finally, she had a lot of perks: her meals were prepared by Hux's personal chef, she had access to his luxurious quarters, and Hux would certainly offer her a lot of gifts.

“So how was your day Gwen?” Hux said. They were both naked in bed and Phasma was massaging him. He really liked that.

“A bit tiring as always,” she replied. “Lots of patrolling, lots of surprise inspections here and there, and a couple of meetings for good measure. And of course, escorting you to your meeting with the Supreme Commander.”

“Yes, we were interrogating some Resistance prisoners,” Hux said. 

“They must have been very important ones,” Phasma said, gently massaging the back of his neck.

“Actually, the one we interrogated was one of their senior officers. You see, we have some traitors among our ranks Gwen.” She immediately stopped, shocked.

“Traitors?”

“Hey, why did you stop?” he asked in a playful voice. “Yes, traitors. Soon, the treason behind the loss of Starkiller base will be revealed.” Phasma resumed her massage but she was worried.

Phasma took a deep breath. She was relieved Hux was prone and couldn't see the worried expression on her face. 

As soon as Hux fell asleep, Phasma wore an elegant silky robe and went to the Jacuzzi. It was her favorite luxury in Hux's quarters. She found the combination of warm water and pressure relaxing and reassuring. It also helped her think better. 

Phasma removed her robe and looked herself on a mirror. She was tall, blonde, with piercing blue eyes, a milky white skin, and a beautiful face. In another world, or in another life she could be an actress or a fashion model. One of the reasons she wore full body armor and a face covering helmet was exactly to avoid men hitting on her or people commenting she succeeded because of her looks. 

She wondered how much her good looks had influenced Hux to hit on her. Probably a lot, she concluded. Letting the thought go, she entered the Jacuzzi. Its warm water soon made her feel better.

She closed her eyes and remembered. She remembered Han Solo, that wookie named Chewie, and that former stormtrooper named FN-2187 threatening her with their weapons unless she lowered the Starkiller energy shields. She remembered them dropping her to a trash compactor, a place she only escaped from due to explosives and a detonator she had hidden in her armor. She escaped the base minutes before it blew up. 

Even if nobody proved it was she who had lowered the shields, she was still responsible. She was head of security of the base, yet enemy infiltrators had managed to breach security. She was responsible for that and without Hux's support she would be court-martialed and probably executed by firing squad.

Now, a senior officer of the Resistance was a Fist Order prisoner. Who could that prisoner be? Organa? Ackbar? Dameron? Holdo? Someone else? There was only one way to find out who he or she was and what he or she knew.

A few seconds later, Phasma burst into tears. “If only they knew why I did it.” The reason she lowered the energy shields had nothing to do with Han Solo threatening her with his blaster. It had to do with ...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To write this story, I used real historical examples for inspiration. For instance, using false confessions to frame your political/military opponents (like Hux and Ren did) was a tactic extensively used in the Stalinist Purges during the 1930s. During that period, Stalin arrested, imprisoned, and executed hundreds of senior Soviet officers to strengthen his rule.


	5. A Force Ghost, the Artifact, and an unexpected secret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected person visits Rey to talk to her about the Artifact.
> 
> Dameron, Leia, and Rose analyze the war situation and convince their allies to use a new tactic to counter the First Order.
> 
> Kylo Ren informs Hux about his new plans.
> 
> While Holdo contemplates the death and destruction she has caused, Phasma visits her. The visit soon takes an unexpected path.

Five weeks after the battle of Crait and the loss of Luke Skywalker ...

It was another ordinary day in Jakku. Both Rey and Finn woke up early after having slept together. Like every day, Finn offered to make coffee for both of them and Rey accepted. 

“I am going to hunt today,” Finn said in a mockingly intimidating voice. Rey burst into laughter. She really liked him playing this macho type of man. In reality, hunting only meant checking the traps for captured animals. Apart from that, Finn had to answer and transmit the hundreds of questions about the First Order Poe had sent him.

“Good, because I will be starving till the end of the day,” Rey said kissing him and taking the offered cup of coffee. Her canteen of water, some food bars, her radio, her notes, her holographic projector, and above all her lightsaber were already in her backpack. She gave Finn a second kiss, climbed on her scooter and left for another long day of training.

It all had been so smooth, Rey thought. They were in a safe place away — at least for the time being — from the horrors of war. They loved each other and wanted to be together. But how long would that last?

After many hours of training, Rey sat in the middle of the room, closed her eyes and meditated. It helped her clear her mind and remain focused. Her legs and arms crossed, Rey inhaled, kept her breath for one minute and exhaled. She repeated the exercise five times. It was all so calm and quiet when suddenly ...

“Rey?” a voice said. It was deep and powerful that sounded as if coming from far away. Rey immediately recognized its owner.

“Master Skywalker?” Rey said, opening her eyes in surprise. The Force Ghost of Jedi Master Luke Skywalker was standing in front of her.

“Hello Rey,” the Jedi Master said. “I lost my life but as you can see, my spirit still exists.”

“I know about Force Ghosts Master Skywalker. It is an honor to see you again.” Rey stood up and bowed her head in respect. “What can I do for you?”

“For starters, I am your old teacher, so I am here to see how your training goes.” 

Rey told Luke about her daily lightsaber practice, reading sessions, meditations, and Force use. Luke asked specific questions expecting Rey to know the right answers. 

“Well done Rey,” the Jedi Master said. “You have made progress. You still need improvement in some areas but you are doing fine. Now it is time to talk about something important.”

“The Artifact?”

“I see you have read my notes,” Luke said with a smile. “Good.”

“Master Skywalker, your notes only mention that the Artifact is a device that greatly augments the powers of its Jedi user. They never mention what it is, what it does or where we can find it.”

Luke Skywalker cleared his throat. “The Artifact can locate Force users in all the Galaxy, no matter how far they are and no matter if they have cut themselves from the Force.”

“All Force users?” Rey asked, amazed. “All Force users among a Galaxy of hundreds of trillions?”

“In theory yes. In reality, that depends on the distance and how strong in the Force someone is. For long distances, you can only locate the most powerful ones. As the distance closes, you can locate the weaker ones as well.”

Rey was speechless. Such a powerful device could end the war. If the Resistance could use the Artifact to locate and recruit thousands of Force users and let them fight against the First Order ... 

“I know what you are thinking Rey,” Luke said. “So here is why I never located or used the Artifact. Decades ago, my own father Anakin Skywalker betrayed the Jedi Order and became Darth Vader, causing the death of almost all Jedis in the Galaxy. 

“When I rebuilt the Jedi Academy after the war, I always had that thought in mind: what if I found the Artifact and one of my students betrayed me and the new Jedi Order, stole the Artifact and used it to locate Force users in the Galaxy?”

“He or she could recruit them for his/her evil schemes and kill the ones unwilling to join him,” Rey said. “You were right Master Skywalker. Ben Solo who now calls himself Kylo Ren ...”

“Yes, that's the one who betrayed me,” the Jedi Master said with a touch of sadness in his voice. “Snoke recruited him and six of my students for the First Order. When the time came, they slaughtered all of the other students in the Academy, burned the building and became the Knights of Ren. Ben also stole my old diary, so he knows about the Artifact and its powers.”

“How much did your old diary contain Master Skywalker?” Rey said.

“Not much,” Luke replied. “I was always afraid of traitors, so I made little progress locating it. I only knew the answer was in the ancient Jedi texts, the ones you have now. And just for the fun of it, I included some fake info to confuse whoever stole my diary. Let me 'beloved' nephew sweat a little.”

Rey contemplated what the Jedi Master had told her so far. But there was still an important question.

“How can I find the Artifact Master Skywalker? The future of the Galaxy might depend on that.”

“The Jedi texts provide the answer Rey. The more you improve as a Jedi, the more you will understand and internalize their meaning. Until one day, you will know you are ready. You will not know how or why but you will know what to look for and where. The Force will guide your steps in a steady and certain path till the two parts of the Artifact are found and become one.”

“Will it be dangerous Master Skywalker?”

“I understand your concerns Rey. I was your age when I first saw combat and my opponent was the Death Star itself! Yes, Rey it will be very dangerous. Kylo Ren — as he calls himself now — has no Jedi texts, but he has an armada of capital ships and an army of spies to support him.”

“I suppose I will have a lot of reading and learning to do then,” Rey said. “But it will be worth it. How many lives will I save if I succeed? Billions.” Her face was full of determination.

Luke Skywalker nodded and smiled. Meanwhile, his figure was fainting. It was time for him to leave.

“I must go now Rey,” Luke said. “Goodbye and keep improving.”

“Goodbye Master Skywalker.”

“May the Force be with you.” And with those final words, the Jedi Master disappeared. 

Half a Galaxy away from Finn, Rey, and Jakku, Rear Admiral Dameron docked his starfighter in the secret underground hangar under the new Resistance headquarters. The moment he docked two women approached him.

“Good evening Admiral,” Leia Organa said. “How was your mission?”

“Good evening General Organa,” Poe said as soon as he exited his spaceship. “Good evening Rose,” he continued. Rose had been Amilyn's aide in the past, and she now acted as Leia's personal secretary and assistant.

“I informed our allies about intelligence provided by our informant,” Poe said meaning Finn and the questions he had answered. For security reasons, he never said Finn's name or location in public. Only Leia Organa knew who he was and where he was hidden. Not even Rose Tico knew details.

After some walking, they reached their main control room. Technicians were trying to install new equipment, such as computers, monitors, and encrypted radio for intergalactic communications. 

“It was all Rose's work. She is really a technology genius,” Leia said with affection. Rose Tico beamed with pride.

“Congratulations Rose,” Poe said.

“Thank you Admiral, General,” Rose said.

They entered a small conference room next to the main room. Rose closed the door, pushed some buttons on the wall, and a huge screen came to life. 

“This is our Galaxy,” Rose said. Poe and Leia observed small white dots on a dark blue background. There was an order and symmetry in the Galaxy that always fascinated Poe. 

Rose pushed another button and the dots changed color. Some became red, others pink, others light green and others darker green.

“After Admiral Dameron destroyed Starkiller,” Rose said, “the fear of First Order retaliation against its enemies became weaker. Many planetary systems have risen up against them, becoming our allies in the process. The dark green dots represent them. The light green ones symbolize potential allies and neutrals who will provide us with fuel, medical supplies, and will allow their people to volunteer to the Resistance.”

Poe Dameron looked at the map. The dark green dots were relatively few but the light green ones were many. That was encouraging. He wondered how many of them would join them.

“Red dots symbolize the First Order bases, shipyards, training facilities, and fully conquered planets.” They were many such dots, mostly concentrated in one Outer Rim area. They had been First Order territories before the war had started.

“The pink dots represent their allies, planets that chose to surrender to avoid annihilation, and planets where the fight is still going on.”

“I wonder how many of those planets know about the loss of Starkiller,” Dameron said. 

“We don't know Poe,” Leia Organa said. “We constantly broadcast messages in various frequencies to inform them but without spies and infiltrators, we can't know for certain.”

“I wish the Resistance could help them,” Rear Admiral Dameron said.

“Apart from the broadcasts, there is nothing we can do,” Leia said. “The Crait survivors were two hundred. We also have reestablished contact with two hundred more who left Raddus days before its destruction.” Poe remembered that he and Amilyn had evacuated a number of Resistance troops in ten different locations to preserve the Resistance even if the First Order killed the rest of them. 

“We also have recruited a hundred more,” Rose said. “In all we are five hundred.”

“They have capital ships with a hundred times that number of people each. And these are the smaller ones,” Dameron said and lowered his head.

“For the time being we can only regroup and reorganize, broadcast signals, and strengthen our alliance,” Leia said. “And learn more about our enemies.”

“You are right General,” Rose said. “Fortunately, learning about our enemies is easier now. As a token of gratitude for Starkiller, most our allies freely share intelligence with us”

“Anything of interest?” Poe asked. “I am afraid I have to catch up after some days of absence.”

“Two things,” Rose said. “One, it appears they have somewhat lost their momentum. They are moving slower and the opposition against them stiffens. It appears the Galaxy is less afraid of them.”

“They no longer have a superweapon to retaliate,” Leia said. “OK Rose. Tell the Admiral about the second part. He will like it.”

“It is mostly an assumption,” Rose said, “but our allied believe there is turmoil in the First Order. Their spies report rumors about front line senior officers who have been recalled without serious explanation.”

“Maybe they failed in their tasks,” Poe said.

“On the contrary,” Rose said. “It appears the ones recalled were the most competent and successful ones.”

“The new bosses want to have loyalists,” Poe said. “And the best loyalists are the incompetent ones. Their incompetence makes them afraid to be independent because they cannot stand and think on their own, so they obey their masters like sheep.”

“Just like politics,” Leia said. “I know. I was a Senator. That mentality is the main reason our Republic fell. Every time someone had the courage to suggest something they were either ignored or treated like traitors. The environment soon became toxic and vicious with nothing ever accomplished. It is no wonder why nobody stopped the First Order years ago Poe.” 

“We have to stop them ourselves then,” Poe said. “And there is a way.”

“Yes. The ramming attacks as Vice Admiral Holdo did.”

“Exactly. Our allies were a bit skeptical about that but our informant's solid intel combined with a detailed report convinced them. They are already modifying old and obsolete spaceships for the task.”

“Will they be enough to stop them?” Leia asked. “Ramming attacks seem like a partial solution to me.”

“You are right on that General,” Poe said. “But in any case they will slow them down. They will be forced to strengthen their spaceships' hulls, add more firepower, and improve their energy shields. Such modifications take time, time we can use to our advantage.”

“Hopefully, the ramming attacks will buy us the time we need,” Leia said. 

Supreme Commander Hux and his numerous armed escorts — including Phasma — exited the elevator. Their destination was Supreme Leader's throne room for a very important meeting. 

At the throne room entrance, two rows of stormtroopers stood in attention and presented arms the moment Hux approached. Hux normally enjoyed this demonstration of respect to his rank but today he didn't even notice. He had other things to care about.

The throne room was exactly as he remembered it: huge with a surface area of hundreds of square meters, a height of at least thirty meters and a combination of red and black colors in various shapes and styles, all designed to intimidate the person entering it. Upon entering, Hux noticed that all the extensive damage from the Resistance ramming attack had been repaired.

“It is an honor to be here with us Supreme Commander,” Supreme Leader Ren said standing up from his throne. The four surviving Knights of Ren around him stood up as well. 

“The honor is all mine Supreme Leader,” Supreme Commander Hux replied. Everyone in his escort knelt before Kylo Ren, except from himself who as a Supreme Commander was exempt from kneeling.

“There are matters of considerable importance to be discussed,” Kylo Ren said as soon as Hux's escort stood up. “They are of an extremely confidential nature.”

“I understand Supreme Leader,” Hux said. He turned around and looked at his escort. Phasma nodded and gave the necessary orders to Hux's escort to leave the room. 

After Hux's escort, the Knights of Ren, and Ren's bodyguards were gone and the door closed, it was time for the meeting to start.

“What is the situation Hux?” Ren asked.

Hux went on to explain that after Holdo 'confessed', they had arrested some officers. Two of them had 'confessed' under torture and were about to be executed. Two more had 'resisted arrest' and were 'unfortunately' killed and two had suffered from 'accidents'.

Hux and Ren had visited Holdo twice more to obtain more 'confessions'. Knowing they were going to torture her again, the Vice Admiral had simply said yes to everything and ten more senior First Order officers were about to 'confess' for collaborating with enemy.

Ren smiled. “Some people are so unlucky during war. Like someone in this room for instance,” meaning Snoke who had been so 'unlucky' in the recent past. 

“I see you've repaired the throne room,” Hux said. 

“I did more than that. I strengthened it. If they ram us again, there is a triple layer of protection around us. Only a direct hit from the Death Star could penetrate it.”

“Good,” Hux said. “Now, what was the confidential matter?”

Kylo Ren explained Hux about the Artifact and why it could destroy the First Order if the Resistance obtained it. Hux had no reason to dispute that. After his near death experience in the hands of Luke Skywalker during the battle of Crait, he had become a believer in the Force and its powers. 

“I am going to obtain the Artifact. You need to order troops to accompany me. You also need to order our Military Intelligence to use their resources to assist.”

Amilyn's situation had improved but only slightly so. She was no longer chained on that chair, and she could at least sleep on a bed. In addition, they had removed the cameras and the microphones from her cell. However, the food remained awful and its quantity remained low. It was barely enough to keep her alive.

Tears fell from her eyes. Yes, she knew that ramming Supremacy was the right thing to do. Yes, she knew she had saved the Resistance and that the killed First Order personnel were enemies. Yes, she knew that every enemy killed would not be able to kill again and that she prevented more deaths than the ones she had caused. But this didn't change the fact that her ramming attack had caused tens of thousands of deaths.

How could she live with that burden in her conscience? How had Luke Skywalker lived with the deaths of the Death Star personnel. How would her beloved Poe cope with the deaths in Starkiller?

“Am I a monster?” she whispered. The logical part of herself told her there was nothing else she could do, that someone would have to ram Raddus anyway, and she not only sacrificed her freedom but also her peace of mind. Her emotional part though was in tears.

“Not all of them deserved to die,” she said in tears. “Most probably didn't.”

Amilyn was too absorbed with her tears and her remorse to notice the door silently opening and a tall First Order officer wearing a chromium plated armor and a full face covering helmet entering the room.

“Hello Amilyn Holdo,” Phasma said.

There was a special area deep inside Supremacy with three layers of specially hardened defensive walls surrounding it. Only one heavily guarded and constantly monitored tunnel allowed entrance to its inner perimeter. 

The heavily guarded area was the maximum security prison that housed First Order personnel responsible for serious crimes and high-ranking enemy officers. Amilyn Holdo was there in cell JB-007.

The only people allowed to visit the prisoners and talk to them without permission were Kylo Ren and Armitage Hux. Phasma was not allowed to be there and her presence should be recorded. However, the warden owned her favors — for turning a bling eye to a huge embezzlement of funds destined for Starkiller Base — and she could visit the prison whenever she wished without questions asked.

Captain Phasma entered the prison area and headed for cell JB-007 where Amilyn was located. Two heavily armed stormtroopers were posted outside it at all times. 

Amilyn turned to look at her visitor. Despite her exhaustion, her hunger, and her sadness, she immediately recognised Captain Phasma. Finn and Poe had extensively briefed her about the enigmatic First Order officer, including her role in Starkiller Base destruction.

“Who are you? And how did you get in here?” Amilyn asked.

“Stop playing games Holdo,” Phasma said. “You know who I am and I know why you are here.”

OK, Amilyn thought. You want to play? Let's play. “Yes, Captain Phasma. I am here because I am a prisoner of war.”

“Nonsense!” Phasma shouted. “You are here because you rammed Supremacy.” She approached Holdo and grabbed her by the neck, only to throw her to the floor. 

Amilyn took a deep breath, then another. Her feeling of sadness was replaced with anger. But her logical part remembered the biggest lesson in her life, a lesson that had helped her so many times in the past: there is an opportunity in every crisis. Taking another deep breath, she slowly stood up.

“Yes, Captain Phasma,” Amilyn said, “it was I who rammed your flagship. Despite this, your bosses have kept me alive although they had every reason and every opportunity to kill me. Do you know why? And do you know why they interrogated me personally instead of delegating the task?”

Phasma remained silent. Amilyn took another deep breath to remain calm.

“Let's say they interrogate me personally because they don't want anyone else to learn I am here. Let's say they have removed the cameras because they don't want others to know what I tell them. So only they can be here. For you, being here means you defy Hux's and Ren's authority.”

“Why, are you going to tell them?” Phasma asked sarcastically. 

“No,” Holdo said. “To risk being here means you have connections with them. Perhaps one of them is your lover. So who is he? Kylo? Armitage? Or both?” Holdo couldn't resist the sarcasm. She soon regretted it when Phasma threw her to the floor again. 

OK Amilyn, she told herself. Now really calm down and be smart.

“I know about you and Dameron Holdo. You are not that different.”

“I agree,” Amilyn said in a very calm voice. “I am not judging you. And I know why you are here.”

Phasma hesitated and didn't say anything. 

“I know it was you who lowered the shields in Starkiller Base,” Amilyn continued. Phasma lowered her hand, hesitating. It was the perfect time for Amilyn to drop her bombshell.

“And that was the moment you earned my respect Captain Phasma,” Amilyn said with a smile.

Phasma looked at her puzzled. What did the Resistance officer mean?

“I am a senior officer in the Resistance. I know specific details about the attack. I know about Han Solo threatening you with his blaster for instance.”

Amilyn took a deep breath. "Don't worry, your secret is safe with me. And that is because I know why you lowered the shields. The real reason, not Han Solo's blaster on your head.

“You went to the control room alone, without any escort. Why? You could have ordered twenty people to be with you at all times. But you didn't. Why? Because you intended to be alone in the control room to lower the shields yourself.

“Maybe you liked the First Order. It offered you a job, privileges, a place to belong. Until forty billion deaths in Hosnian System convinced you your bosses were ruthless murderers. You wanted Starkiller Base to go to prevent more such deaths. That is what I call conscience Captain Phasma and you have it. That is why I respect you.”

Phasma was speechless. She was happy she wore a helmet and Amilyn could not see her tears. She had expected hostility but Amilyn had shown respect and understanding. In a sense she had disarmed her. 

“If you want to talk to someone, talk to me,” Amilyn told Phasma when the latter unlocked the cell door to leave. “I am not going anywhere after all. And you may tell me your full name if you want.”

Phasma was about to open the door. But before leaving she turned to face Holdo. “Gwen,” she said. “Gwen Phasma. And you were right about my motives. Goodnight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always wondered: how did people like Luke Skywalker or Poe Dameron feel after they had destroyed superweapons and killed so many people?
> 
> Did they feel remorse? Did they wish they had done something differently? That is why Amilyn is so sad.


	6. A Suspicious General

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe Dameron leads the first well-organized ramming attack against the First Order.
> 
> Armitage Hux learns about Dameron's attack and adjusts the First Order tactics. He also tests a new type of artillery against a New Republic capital ship.
> 
> Finally, a First Order General realizes something is off and tries to contact ...

Six weeks after the battle of Crait ...

Reinforcing the Resistance and strengthening the alliance against the First Order had been a slow and gradual process, much slower than Poe had wished. Nevertheless, it had brought some results to the table. The First Order had stretched themselves thin trying to attack multiple fronts and had to rely on conscripted troops to keep the occupied territories pacified.

On spaceship warfare, Dameron's area of expertise, things were also promising. The allies of the Resistance had adopted ramming as their main battle strategy and had made numerous attacks against First Order capital ships. 

However, their attacks had been uncoordinated and weak. Usually, their attacks consisted of a lonely spaceship attacking a formation of First Order capital ships. In most cases, such attacks had failed and only a handful of them had caused significant damage.

Dameron decided to use another approach. Instead of one spaceship, he used six of them together to attack a four-spaceship formation. Hopefully, the enemy would be unable to shoot them all down.

The enemy formation approached. The six capital ships under Dameron's command were hidden inside an asteroid field, undetectable from enemy radar observation. 

“OK everyone,” Poe said on the radio. “Remember the basics. You aim for the bridges and you eject the moment you have locked on them.” The other five pilots in the obsolete capital ships confirmed his order. It was only a matter of time now. 

“Let's go rebels!” Poe said and activated the spaceship engines. The other five ships followed him. He could observe they all followed his orders: the first four directly attacked one spaceship each while he with the last spaceship made a detour to attack the enemy flagship from a different angle. 

All First Order starfighters patrolling the area around the capital ships rushed to hit the allied spaceships. In addition, the four capital ships opened fire against their attackers. It was the distraction Dameron had hoped for.

“OK Chewie,” Poe said. “Aim for the bridge.” The legendary wookie who piloted the last and biggest allied capital ship turned it to face the enemy flagship.

The first four attacking allied spaceships failed to do any damage. The enemy turbolasers and starfighters destroyed them before they had a chance to get any closer. The last two though took advantage of the distraction and hit the enemy bridge, causing heavy damage and killing the First Order Rear Admiral who led the group.

All pilots successfully ejected from their spaceships using escape pods. The only exception was Chewie who used the legendary Millennium Falcon as his escape pod and had the added duty to gather the surviving pilots in it.

A few minutes later, all five pilots returned to the asteroid field and located the Falcon using its specialized homing beacon. Five minutes later, all five of them were inside the spaceship. Unfortunately, First Order TIE fighters had located them.

“Get us out of here Chewie,” Poe said and went to man one of the anti-aircraft guns. The rest of the pilots did the same. The enemy fighters attacked but the existence of asteroids, Chewie's superb piloting skills, and determined anti-aircraft fire from the Falcon's quad guns kept them at bay.

“OK R2,” Poe said talking to the legendary astromech droid. “Are we ready to jump to hyperspace?” R2 bleeped. Five seconds later, they performed the jump, escaping danger.

“We did it,” Poe said to the other pilots surrounding him. “We damaged their flagship.”

“But we lost six spaceships to damage one,” one of the pilots said.

“Think of the long term consequences my friend,” Poe said. “Be more strategic. Think of what Hux is going to think.”

Supreme Commander Armitage Hux finished reading the report about Dameron's recent ramming attack, an increasingly common enemy tactic. Although the enemy had lost six spaceships, the First Order had suffered heavy damage in one of their capital ships and had lost one of their Rear Admirals.

On paper, it seemed like a First Order victory. But Hux knew better than that. The enemy had used old and obsolete spaceships, each one of them costing dozens of times less than one of his capital ships. The enemy could easily afford to lose ten spaceships for each one they damaged. Combined with its simplicity of execution, ramming could become a very common anti-First Order technique. 

To counter such attacks, Hux was forced to change tactics. Capital ship groups would double in size for extra firepower, which enhanced their survivability. On the other hand, that meant less capital ship groups, which in turn meant fewer places to attack at the same time. The enemy would have time and space to regroup and reorganize. But there was no other way.

“Dameron you smart bastard,” Hux said in greeted teeth. According to General Conadi, head of his intelligence, Poe Dameron had been the officer who destroyed Starkiller. Further intelligence suggested Leia Organa had given him a free hand to run the military affairs of the Resistance while she focused on politics and diplomacy. 

“You are smart Dameron and your boss fully trusts you, but I am smart as well. And I have a big surprise for you and your allies.”

The alarm sounds stopped Hux's train of thought. He exited the small conference room and went to the bridge to see what was going on. Captain Phasma was already there.

“It is an enemy cruiser Supreme Commander,” Phasma said. “Their energy shields are up, and they are at a great distance. Our turbolasers cannot damage them that far away.”

Hux smiled. “True. But we have more tricks to play than that.”

“Will you order a bomber attack Supreme Commander?” Phasma asked. 

“No, I will order an FK attack.”

Fleet Killer, or FK for short, was a new type of weapon the First Order had developed during the past months. It was a type of energy cannon that fired supercharged energy projectiles. The projectiles were so powerful that one of them could destroy an entire fleet of capital ships if fired in the middle of them. 

The First Order had experimented creating a specialized type of spaceship named dreadnought with two FK cannons for combat duties. Unfortunately for Hux, the type was too lightly armored and thus very vulnerable to enemy attacks. For that reason, they had removed its two cannons, placing one on Supremacy and the other on Shipyard Four, their most secret and important war factory, for added defense. As for the dreadnought, it became a military supply spaceship. 

“What is the FK status?” Hux asked the officer responsible for its use.

“It is fully charged and ready to fire Supreme Commander.”

“Very well. Fire one shot just ahead of the enemy cruiser.”

Heavy cruiser Endor was one of the oldest New Republic spaceships. Named after the famous Galactic Civil war battle, Endor had proudly served the Republic for more than two decades. Its commanding officer, a veteran of the war himself, had been one of the oldest and most experienced officers in the New Republic Navy. In fact, Poe Dameron had once been one of his subordinates.

Endor had survived the Hosnian Cataclysm that destroyed the bulk of the New Republic Navy because it had been on patrol in the Outer Rim. So far, the cruiser had only taken part in minor skirmishes evading First Order capital ship groups and trying to help wherever it could. 

The commander of Endor considered himself lucky. They had suffered only minor losses during the past weeks. But the moment his radars showed Supremacy behind them, jumping from hyperspace in a precise maneuver, he knew they were dead.

How had they located them? It appeared that the report from Dameron, about hyperspace tracking technology had been correct. What could …

He didn't finish his thought. A huge energy projectile passed some hundreds of meters above them, moving at twice their speed. It cast a blinding light on them, as if the sun had suddenly appeared. 

“It is blowing up!” someone shouted. The commander looked at the window in front of him. The energy projectile expanded and expanded until it engulfed them. The commander, his crew, and their spaceship were gone in an instant.

“Amazing,” Phasma said. 

“It is not Starkiller. It is not the Death Star. But it is still very effective,” Hux said. “In fact it is more effective,” he continued. “We can create hundreds of such cannons and attack hundreds of targets at the same time.”

Phasma remained speechless. 

“If you excuse me Supreme Commander, my shift is not over yet,” she said. “I will inspect some areas of the ship.”

“Of course Captain,” Hux said. “See you later.”

It was an open secret that Hux and Phasma were lovers and everyone on the bridge understood what 'see you' meant. But none wanted to risk the wrath of the Supreme Commander so everyone pretended they hand't heard a thing.

Phasma had mixed feelings about Hux. On the one hand, she had conscience and that was the reason she had deactivated the Starkiller shields. On the other hand, despite her discussion with Holdo, she still believed in Hux and the First Order. She really admired Armitage Hux. He was smart, strong, decisive, a visionary. 

Phasma knew why Amilyn wanted to befriend her. She wanted someone to help her escape. After all, Holdo's lover Dameron had escaped when a stormtrooper had freed him. 

It was too dangerous for Phasma to visit Holdo again. And she wasn't certain she wanted to do it for the time being. Perhaps some days later ... 

General Octavius Conadi checked the data again. Impossible. Yet their accuracy was beyond a shadow of doubt. He checked them again to make certain.

During warfare, casualties are to be expected. And although senior officers usually don't fight in the first line, they are still at risk. After all, just a few weeks ago they had lost Supreme Leader Snoke. But there was something wrong with the senior officers casualties. They seemed too heavy in Conadi's eyes. And the decades of his experience told him something was way off.

Octavius Conadi was sixty years old and a veteran of the Galactic Civil War. He was thirty when that war had ended, and he had achieved the rank of Captain in the Imperial Military Intelligence department. His duties back then had been to analyze enemy activity and possible enemy infiltration of the Imperial Army and report everything to his bosses ASAP. 

When the Empire collapsed after the battle of Jakku, Conadi and many other Imperial officers had escaped to the Outer Rim where the New Republic could not locate them. Led by Supreme Leader Snoke, the officers founded the First Order and started rebuilding their forces.

General Conadi was bitter that despite three decades of devoted service to the First Order, Supreme Leader Snoke seemed to prefer the new generation of officers instead of the old guard. For instance, Armitage Hux was about half his age. How could these young — and often arrogant — officers rule the First Order and the Galaxy better than their more experienced predecessors?

Nevertheless, orders were orders and Conadi obeyed his Supreme Leader. Besides, Conadi had left the Empire as a Captain and Snoke had made him a General, valuing his intelligence gathering skills and especially his ability to establish spy networks in various planetary systems. Such networks had offered tremendous advantages to the First Order during the years leading to the war.

“The war! The bloody war!” Conadi told himself in a whisper. General Conadi never understood why Snoke had allowed Hux to use Starkiller to blow the Hosnian System up. In his opinion, such an attack had no practical benefit. Granted, it had destroyed most of the New Republic capital ships and killed its military and civilian leadership paralyzing the Galaxy. 

On the other hand, that was exactly the problem. If the enemy is left leaderless, what are its troops going to do? Who is going to order them to surrender their weapons and ammo if there is none left to give the orders?

In Conadi's opinion, the First Order should not have destroyed the Hosnian System. Instead, they should have made a demonstration blowing up some unoccupied or lightly populated planets and declare Hosnian Prime would be next. The New Republic leaders would be scared and intimidated and would order their troops to stand down and accept the First Order terms.

Instead, the Hosnian System was blown up and full scale war had started. His spy network confirmed the obvious: everyone hated the First Order now. As long as Starkiller still existed, they could use terror to keep their enemies in line. But the loss of the superweapon meant the rest of the Galaxy was less afraid of them. It was only a matter of time before everyone took arms against them.

In addition, his spy network suffered as a result. His biggest spy ring was in Hosnian Prime, the capital of the New Republic. All of them were vaporized in the destruction. In addition, many of his spies in other planets no longer cooperated with the Order. Even the greediest of people are morally outraged with ruthless murderers who commit genocide. Many of them had returned the money they had received with death threats for the First Order leaders.

His spy network was in a crisis and senior leaders were 'disappearing'. Had the Resistance or its allies infiltrated the Order just like he had done to them? Or was there something else at play?

Had some First Order personnel second thoughts about the war? Had they lost faith after the Hosnian Cataclysm? It could be. But why had they attacked these officers and not others? The officers in question were really competent ones and ...

“Who knew these officers were competent?” Conadi thought. Only someone with inside knowledge ... 

A chilling thought crossed his mind. After some more minutes of search, his suspicions were confirmed: the dead senior officers had been replaced by much less competent ones, officers who owned the promotions to connections and parroting the party line and not to achievement. And Supreme Commander Hux had approved all of them!

Conadi further checked the data. Some of the most competent officers had survived and had been decorated but had received new assignments as rulers of occupied territories far away from the first line. They only controlled lightly armed forces, many of which consisted of conscripts of poor fighting quality. In other words, Conadi thought, their forces were too weak to mutiny. 

“If what I suspect is right,” Conadi told himself, “I am dead. And so is my son.” 

There was no more time to waste. Pushing a button on his datapad, he summoned Major Julius Conadi, his son and most trusted officer.

“My son,” General Conadi said when they were alone, “find Leia Organa.”


	7. The Secrets of the Artifact and the First Order

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe visits Q, the head of the Resistance Intelligence and learns about Conadi. Afterwards, he goes to Cloud City to visit him using the code name James Bond.
> 
> Meanwhile, Finn and Rey meet Leia Organa and Rey informs Leia about the Artifact.

A few weeks later...

As soon as Poe Dameron finished his daily briefing with Leia and Rose Tico, he went to visit Geoffrey Boothroyd, head of the Resistance Intelligence.

Geoffrey Boothroyd was born in Gatalenka during 26 BBY. At the age of twenty, he joined the Rebel Alliance and received Special Forces training with emphasis on infiltration behind enemy lines, assassination of high value targets, and sabotage. For six years, he used his skills in various anti-Imperial operations, earning the praise of his superiors.

When the the Galactic Civil war broke out, Boothroyd added intelligence gathering in his repertoire of skills and undertook clandestine missions. He really loved such missions because of their secretive nature and because they reminded him of James Bond – code name 007 – a legendaray fictional secret agent he was a fan of.

Apart from taking part in such missions, Boothroyd was skilled in creating gadgets to better help him accomplish his objectives such as explosive pens, miniature bombs, hidden transmitters etc. For that reason, his cousin Amilyn Holdo – a huge 007 fan herself – called him Q, like a recurring character in 007 films who provided Bond with his gadgets. Boothroyd liked the designation and he adopted it as his code name.

After the war ended, Boothroyd returned to his home planet and became a farmer while Amilyn left to become Leia's aide, never to come back. Despite the distance, the two cousins remained close, deeply loving and caring about each other. After all, Amilyn was the only family left for Q (the war had claimed all other lives).

Three years before the war started, Amilyn visited Q and asked him to join the Resistance. She also asked him his opinion about her romantic involvement with a man named Poe Dameron. To her delight, cousin Q had been positive on both.  
When the First Order blew the Hosnian System up, Q was away from D'qar base and immediately tried to join the rest of the Resistance. Unfortunately, the confusion due to the loss of D'qar base and the near destruction of the Resistance delayed his deployment until after the battle of Crait.

Q immediately proved his worth designing gadgets, training infantry troops, and taking over as head of intelligence. It was due to this latter role that he received a special message from Cloud City that required Dameron's or Leia's immediate attention.

"Good evening Q," Poe said when he entered his small lab. Q was tinkering with a wristwatch, apparently trying to repair it.

"Good evening 007," Q replied. Boothroyd always called Poe 007 or Bond when they were alone. It was their inside joke.

"A few days ago," Q said, "we received a message from our ally Lando Carlissian in Cloud City." 

During the years before the war, the First Order had used gambling as a means to launder money: they gave lots of money to intermediaries, the intermediaries gambled them, kept a percentage of the earnings and returned the rest to the First Order. From their part, the casinos knew where the money came from but since they made a lot of extra profit they turned a blind eye to the First Order tricks. And Lando Carlissian was one of those who took that money and pretended they didn't know where they came from.

"Let's not be that harsh on Carlissian," Q said. "If he had said no to them, they would have gambled elsewhere. Besides, he donated a lot of that money to us."

"Agreed. Even Leia Organa understands that," Poe said. "And besides, that has allowed us to gather lots of intel from the First Order. Which, I assume, relates to the message we received from Carlissian."

"Correct. There is a First Order senior officer who will sent one of his assosiates to talk to us. And he will only talk to Leia Organa ... or you."  
"What does that officer want?"

"He only said he has valuable inside knowledge about the First Order. But he will only reveal that in person."

"So what do you think Poe?" Leia asked after his meeting with Q.

"Can we trust Lando Carlissian?" Poe asked. "The meeting will be in his place after all."

"He blew the second Death Star," Leia said, "so yes."

"He also betrayed you, Chewie, and Han Solo to Darth Vader," Poe countered. 

"He was forced to do that," Leia said. "If he refused, Darth Vader would kill everyone in Cloud City."

"I don't question Lando's intentions," Poe said in a more diplomatic tone. "But he still runs Cloud City and he still has his people to protect. What if ..."

"... the First Order leaders do what Darth Vader threatened to do?" Leia said completing the sentense. Both fell silent.

"I can't order you to do that Poe," Leia said. "After all, if one of us goes to the meeting and it is a trap, we will either end up dead or even worse become prisoners."

Poe looked at Leia and nodded. Both of them had been captured and tortured by their enemies to reveal info. If the First Order captured him, they could learn the location of the secret Resistance headquarters, the location of Rey, and critical details about the Resistance plans.

On the other hand, the officer who had made the request was Julius Conadi and his father was Augustus Conadi, a First Order General. If Finn – a stormtrooper with no rank – had provided them with so much valuable intel, how much more would a General give them? Enough perhaps to win the war, Poe thought.  
After some contemplation, Poe reached his decision.

"I will go. It is worth the risk. But we need to take precautions just in case. Until I return, we must evacuate our headquarters and our remote bases and we must also move Finn and Rey from Jakku."

"Done," Leia said. "I will present it as an emergency evacuation drill so as not to attract suspicion. I will have Rose and Q plan it. We shall also modify our plans of operations just in case. You go to Jakku, pick Finn and Rey up and rendezvous with the Millennium Falcon on your way to Cloud City." 

"On my way," Poe said and went to his spaceship.

It was a warm and quiet night in Jakku. Rey and Finn were sitting outside the Imperial Walker hulk that had been Rey's home for years. They were watching the stars while quietly eating their dinner and relaxing from another tiring day.  
It had taken him weeks but in the end Finn had finished answering all questions Poe had sent him. The questions had included various topics from fueling schedules for starfighters to composition of a typical First Order infantry platoon.

Finn and Rey had asked whether they could join the main Resistance forces but both Poe and Leia had objected that. Finn was a First Order defector and after the Hosnian Cataclysm there was so much hatred Poe was afraid someone of their allies might assassinate him as reprisals. 

Rey was an even more extreme case. Although everyone liked her, she was the last Jedi and her death would mean the Jedi Order would never return. And during their existence how many wars had the Jedi Order prevented? How many trillions of lives had they saved? Too many to count and their failure to stop Palpatine could not erase that fact.

With those thoughts in mind, Finn and Rey finished eating and looked at each other.

“Today's training was really good,” Finn said. “It's good we train together.”

“Yes,” Rey replied. “I with the lightsaber, you with the blaster. We really make a good team.” Rey would be the first line of offense and defense cutting down enemies and deflecting blaster hits with her lightsaber. Finn would be behind her hitting distant enemies with his blaster and looking for flanking attacks.

Finn was about to kiss Rey when he heard engine noises from a spaceship descending close to them. It was Poe.

After a few hours of traveling, Poe, Rey, and Finn reached the Millennium Falcon. Leia Organa, Q, Rose Tico, Chewie, R2, and C-3PO were already there, waiting for them.

"Hello Admiral," Leia said. "Thank you for bringing Finn and Rey with us. Welcome on board."

"Good luck in your assignement Admiral," Leia said. Poe saluted everyone, entered his spaceship and continued his journey to Cloud City.

"So Rey," Leia asked after Poe had left, "how is your training going?"

"It goes fine General Organa," Rey replied. "In fact, the Force Ghost of Master Skywalker has visited me to comment my training."

"That's my brother Luke," Leia said with a warm smile. "Even death couldn't come between him and teaching."

The discussion revolved around the war situation. Leia informed Finn and Rey about their new ramming tactics Poe had introduced and about their impact: they had forced the First Order to use bigger formations which in turn meant less capital ship groups and thus less places to attack at the same time. When Leia finished talking, it was Rey's turn to talk about the Artifact.

When the first Jedi built their first temple on Alch-To, they realized they were too few of them to have a positive impact on the Galaxy as a force of peace and stability. They were barely a dozen in a Galaxy of hundreds of trillions. They needed to recruit thousands quickly.

In theory, a Force-sensitive Jedi can sense the presence of another such person. In reality though, even the strongest Jedi has a very limited power to do so. An average Jedi could spent years without locating a single Force-sensitive person even if he or she tried his/her hardest on a daily basis.

To solve the problem, the first Jedi created the Artifact. It remains a mustery how they did it but it is clear what it did. It multiplied the search capabilities of its user thousands of times. 

"A Force user without the Artifact is like someone watching the night sky with a naked eye," Rey said, "A Force user with the Artifact is like someone with a powerful telescope."

After the first Jedi created the Artifact, they used it to locate people with strong Force-sensitivity and approached them one by one. Many of them agreed to join them and soon the Jedi Order was formed.

"The Artifact reminds me of the holocrons," Rose said. "They are Jedi devices as well."

"True," Rey said, "but there is a key difference. Holocrons are essentially storage devices that contain holograms with information from their deceased Jedi creators. They have static knowledge of the past that never changes. The Artifact, on the other hand, contains dynamic knowledge of the present. It is updated every time you use it."

"How accurate is the Artifact?" Rose asked.

"Let's say there is a formation of a thousand starfighters and a Jedi pilots one of them," Rey said. "Without the Artifact, you only know there is a Jedi somewhere in the formation. With the Artifact, you know the specific starfighter the Jedi pilots."

"That is really impressive," Rose admitted. Rey agreed and continued her narrative.

When the Jedi Order was established, the Artifact lost its utility. The Jedi were now thousands and they didn't need to expand their numbers. Maintaining their population was enough to ensure peace and stability in the Galaxy and they could accomplish that without the Artifact. In fact, keeping is was more trouble than worth it. What if the Sith stole it and used it to create a Sith Order?

For that reason the Jedi Order decided to hide the Artifact and only use it in case they suffered massive casualties. So they cut it in two pieces, each one powerless without the other, and gave each piece to a Jedi Master of unquestionable integrity. Each of the two Jedi Masters had orders to hide his/her piece in a secret location and never tell anyone where it was.

There was only one exception to that rule of secrecy: to keep the secret from being lost, each Jedi Master had to tell its location to a younger Jedi to maintain its knowledge after his/her death. When he or she died, the younger Jedi became the keeper of the secret and found one other Jedi to share the secret with him/her. That created a chain of knowledge that spanned generations and remained unbroken for thousands of years.

During the Clone Wars, Sith lord Darth Sidious, also known as Palpatine, issued Order 66, which caused the death of thousands of Jedi in the Galaxy. Apparently, the two pairs of Jedi who knew about the two parts of the Artifact were among the dead. Fortunately, Palpatine either didn't know about the Artifact or for various reasons failed to obtain it thus sparing the Galaxy from a Sith Order.

After the war Luke Skuwalker had tried for decades to locate the Artifact but to no effect. He moved too slowly because he did not trust his Jedi students to assist him. He believed some of them might betray him.

"He was proven right," Rey said. "Kylo Ren and the Knights of Ren are all former students of his."

After Kylo Ren betrayed his master, Luke Skywalker knew things were critical. All the other Jedi were either slain or had defected to the First Order. He was the only one left and he needed to find the Artifact to rebuild the Jedi Order ... but there was nowhere for him to find it.

The only solution he could find was to go to the source, so he went to Alch-To to start from scratch. Perhaps there was a way to build another Artifact or perhaps a Jedi hundreds of years ago had thought to hide it there. Or perhaps there was an equally powerful solution waiting for him there.

"Luke never abandoned us," Leia said with tears in her eyes. "He simply wanted to help. I should have understood."

"So what are we going to do with the Artifact?" Rey asked. "Master Skywalker had made progress in finding it. But he insisted I should not try to locate it."

"As long as the war continues, it is too risky for you," Leia said. "You are the last Jedi left Rey. If you die, our last hope to rebuild the Jedi Order will die with you."

"You are right on that General Organa. However, what happens if I don't interfere and the First Order wins the war and they locate the Artifact for themselves?"

Leia and Poe had spent countless hours debating the point. Both had agreed Rey should only join the fight if things became critical and the First Order came close to obtain the Artifact. But when would that point be? Rey looked at Leia and asked the question.

Leia smiled. "Trust me Rose, Luke will tell us when that monent comes. Force Ghost or not, he is still a Jedi Master."

Poe's spaceship jumped from hyperspace. The lights of Cloud City appeared in the horizon, so many, so bright and with so many colors and variability. They were just like the visitors there, Poe thought: rich, rich wannabes, hustlers, criminals, con artists, playboys, and a lonely Resistance officer who tried to do his best spy impersonation.

He checked the contents of the suitcase Q had given him. There were two small pistols he could conceal on his person, a datapad to store data (just in case, Q had only kept its operating system and had erased everything else), and a fake ID card identifying him as James Bond, sales manager in a trading firm named Universal Exports. Last but not least, Q had provided him with a tuxedo.

"007 always enters a casino with a tuxedo," Poe said with a smile.

For the hundredth time, Poe asked himself the same questions. Was it all a trap? Why did the officer in question want to meet him? What did he have to offer? What secrets would Poe learn? 

And for the hundredth time, there was no answer ...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am a HUGE 007 fan, so I decided to make Poe (my favorite new Trilogy character) a 007 fan as well. I hope it has remained plot relevant.


	8. James Bond in Cloud City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe Dameron meets Julius Conadi in Cloud City. 
> 
> Afterwards, Leia, Chewie, Rose, R2 and C-3PO fly with the Millennium Falcon close to Supremacy to meet with General Conadi and his son.

"How can I help you sir?" the receptionist asked when Poe approached the hotel reception. The meeting with Major Conadi would take place in the hotel casino.

"I just landed in Cloud City and I have a reservation," Poe replied. Leia had used her old friendship with Lando to discreetly book him a room.

"Yes sir," the receptionist said. "Your name please?"

Poe Dameron took a deep breath. For more than twenty years he had wanted, he had hoped, he had desired he would use the most famous Bond one-liner for real. And now the time had come. He looked at the receptionist in the eyes, cleared his throat and said the immortal words every 007 fan is familiar with.

"The name is Bond. James Bond."

Inside his room, Poe unpacked his suitcase. Despite the journey, the tuxedo was in perfect shape, ready for him to wear it. Poe looked at it. The clothes, the datapad as gadget, the guns, the mission ... only the Bond Girl was missing ...

"Amilyn would be a perfect Bond Girl," he told himself with a smile, entering the shower. When he finished, he got dressed with the tuxedo, hid the two pistols on his person and took the elevator for the casino area.

Hundreds of people were already there, gambling, flirting, laughing (when they won), trying not to cry (when they lost), conspiring or simply trying to forget the horrors of war for a night. How many of them would be broke by the next morning?.

From a certain point of view, Poe himself was a gambler as well, although he didn't bet with money and he didn't bet by choice. His gambling chips were soldiers and spaceships and the prize was peace and freedom from the First Order. And tonight he hoped to raise the stakes on a Galactic level.

Poe sat on a blackjack table, the third from the door to the right, and started playing. He drew the first card, an eight, and the second one, a nine. Seventeen. If he stopped there, he had a mediocre chance of winning. If he drew less than four, he would barely increase his chances of victory. If he drew higher than four, he would lose it all. But if he drew exactly four, he would win for certain.

"I suggest you stop here," a man in his early thirties said. "It is too risky to continue."

Poe examined the man and recognized him in an instant. He was Major Julius Conadi himself. Just like him, he was wearing a tuxedo.

"I admire your prudence Mr. ..."

"Largo. Emilio Largo." Poe looked at him again with a smile. The man had the same name as one of 007's enemies. Even the First Order had James Bond fans, Poe thought.

"However, I feel lucky tonight. Give me a card," Poe said to the casino man. The man did as Poe asked. Poe took the card, slowly turned it, only to reveal ... a four! Poe had won.

"Five hundred credits for you sir," the casino man said giving Dameron the marks.

"I admire your luck Mr. ..."

"Bond. James Bond." The man with the tuxedo smiled.

"You really pressed your luck there Mr. Bond."

"Let's say the specter of defeat was absent tonight Mr. Largo." Conadi smiled for the obvious 007 reference.

A few minutes later both men were in the casino restaurant, sitting on opposite sides of the table. 'James Bond' ordered salmon with white wine and 'Emilio Largo' ordered corned beef with red wine.

"So Mr. Largo," Poe asked, "what brings you in Cloud City?"

"I am here to negotiate a big sale ... of Galactic importance. And you Mr. Bond?"

"I am here to negotiate a big purchase. Perhaps my associates will be interested in your offer."

"I certainly hope so Mr. Bond. The quality of the product in question is of the ... first order so to speak." Poe smiled with the wordplay.

"Could I see a sample of it Mr. Largo?" Poe asked.

"By all means. I will show you a photograph taken less than a week ago. You will certainly recognize the person in it," Conadi said and passed his datapad to Dameron.

It took all of Dameron's self-discipline to remain calm when he saw the picture. Her beautiful blue eyes! Her expressive face! Amilyn was alive!

"I understand Mr. Largo," Poe said, still trying to remain calm. "So what exactly does the package you are willing to sell contain?"

Major Conadi started describing the contents of the package using the same coded language he already had used. Dameron's interest increased each passing minute. Conadi offered all the vital information Poe needed to hit the First Order hard: the Supremacy schematics, the locations of the four main enemy shipyards – with detailed schematics –, and last but not least the Big List.

The Big List, as Leia Organa had called it, was a list of wealthy industrialists and corrupt politicians who had secretly helped the First Order before the war. The industrialists had used their factories to secretly build weapons for the Order for profits well above their normal rates. The politicians had received bribes to turn a blind eye to First Order crimes before the war (such as money laundering) and to keep the New Republic in the darkness about the enemy's intentions.

Leia had personal reasons to learn the names on that list. Some people on it had been the ones who had revealed her father was Darth Vader to force her to resign from the Senate.

But apart from that, knowing the contents of that list would give the Resistance tremendous leverage. The Galaxy hated the First Order, so the people on the list would be very vulnerable and that vulnerability could be exploited. Poe had to formulate a plan with Leia about that.

When Conadi's presentation was over, Poe looked at him. "Mr. Largo, I think your products sell themselves," he said. "The only question is whether the quality is the one advertised."

Conadi placed a small data disk on the table. Poe looked at it.

"The disk contains all the data. There is a small non-encrypted sample for you to analyze. But most are encrypted with very powerful algorithms and only we have the decryption key. If you accept our offer, we will offer the key to you."

"Which is?"

"Fifty million credits for me and fifty million for my associate. It is a vast amount of money but it is worth it," Conadi said. "And you know what else."

Poe nodded in agreement. With so much hatred after the Hosnian Cataclysm, the two officers – defectors or not – would not last more than an hour in an area not controlled by the First Order. The Resistance would have to provide them with new identities and a hideout.

"I understand Mr. Largo," Poe said. "Our analysts will examine the data you have provided us and my boss will decide about your offer."

"I believe your boss will agree Mr. Bond. If that is the case, there are instructions in the data disk about your next move."

"I will contact my boss as soon as possible Mr. Largo."

"Thank you Mr. Bond. Now, I am afraid I will have to leave you," Conadi said and stood up. "Goodnight, Mr. Bond." And with those final words, he left.

Poe remained in the restaurant for a few minutes and finished his dinner. Amilyn was alive! And perhaps there was a way to free her! To celebrate, he had a glass of Dom Perignon champagne, and gave a rather generous tip to the waiter.

The next day, Poe was back to the Resistance headquarters. He had a lot to discuss with Leia Organa.

"Was everything OK while I was absent?" Poe asked when he and Leia were alone.

"Yes Poe," Leia replied. "Nobody suspected a thing. Since you have safely returned, I ordered the evacuation drill terminated. The good news is that our people have a high level of readiness and they moved very fast and very effectively."

"Very well. How about Finn and Rey?"

"They informed me about the Artifact and Rey once more volunteered to help us. I once more declined. It is not enough to win this war, we need to reestablish the Jedi Order to prevent the next one."

"You are right Leia. If Rey dies, all hope is lost. Now, let me tell you the details about the meeting." Poe spent the next minutes informing her.

"OK Poe," Leia said. "For the information they provide, they deserve what they ask. I can arrange for them to have fake papers and new identities. And we can give them the money they ask because we have received a lot in donations. So make contact with them and tell them we agree."

"There is one more thing," Poe said, with a very happy expression on his face. "Amilyn is alive!"

Leia hugged him, smiling. "I knew it! I had never lost faith in her!"

A few minutes later, Poe was in Q's lab. Rose Tico was there as well. He had given them the data disk to analyze it and try to decrypt it, if possible.

"So?" Poe asked.

"It has a very strong encryption," Rose said. "Even if we use every computer in the Galaxy, we need at least a million years to decrypt the data."

"OK then, we contact them for the decryption key," Poe said. "Send the message."

A few days later ...

Inside Supremacy, General Octavius Conadi checked his datapad. The answer he was waiting for had just arrived. They had accepted! It was time for him to abandon the First Order.

It was only a matter of time now. If everything went according to plan, he and his son would get new identities and retire in a luxurious place like Canto Bight or Cloud City and remain there for the rest of their days. Hux's purges would not harm them.

The door to his office opened and Julius Conadi entered. He was disguised like a First Order technician. He also carried a technician's uniform for his father to wear. After changing into his new clothes, General Conadi stood up, picked up his pistol, his datapad, and a thermal grenade from a closet and headed for the door.

"OK my son. Let's go."

Inside a small conference room on Supremacy bridge, Armitage Hux checked his datapad. The secret purging program he and Kylo Ren had initiated was working. Most undesirable senior officers were either dead or reassigned to posts far away from the first line. In a few weeks, they would have complete control of the First Order.

Hux had noticed Conadi's behavior was a bit suspicious during the last weeks. For instance, he had visited Shipyard Four, their most secret base, supposedly to search for enemy infiltrators. Was he telling the truth or was he the infiltrator himself?

Hux didn't care one way or the other. Conadi and his son would be purged anyway. The question was purely academic.

The door suddenly opened. It was Captain Phasma.

Inside the Millennium Falcon, Leia Organa checked her datapad. According to Conadi's plan, he would make contact with them in a few minutes and only if Leia Organa – and nobody else – replied on his contact request. So Leia had to be there and wait.

She looked around her. Chewie was piloting the Falcon, R2 and C-3PO were helping with the navigation, and Rose Tico was in front of a radar monitor, waiting for Supremacy to appear on radar.

The minutes passed but no sign of Supremacy appeared. Rose had lost faith when suddenly ...

"It is the Supremacy! I can see it on the radar!"

"Is our cloaking working?" Leia asked.

"Yes General," C-3PO said.

"Good," Leia said. "OK Chewie. Get us closer."


	9. A key to decrypt the enemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leia, Poe, Rose, and Chewie approach Supremacy to let the two enemy officers come to them. 
> 
> Unfortunately, something unexpected happens and they have to fight for their lives.

Light cruiser Yoda had seen better days, Poe thought. Built during the Clone Wars, already obsolete during the Galactic Civil War, and a decommissioned relic during the First Order War, Yoda had no chance of survival in a modern war. Nevertheless, it still had a role to play.

Yoda had been a cruiser during the Clone Wars and had served the Republic with distinction (it had another name back then). When the war ended, the cruiser became a freighter and remained so for two decades. However, when the Galactic Civil War started, it was recommissioned and became military transport.

After the war ended, the transport was named Yoda to honor the memory of the famous Jedi Master and became a freighter again. But after the battle of Crait, it was donated to the Resistance to be used for ramming attacks. It had no offensive armament left and its defenses consisted of old and barely functioning energy shields. They could stop starfighter guns and very light turbolasers but that was all they could do.

But Poe Dameron didn't care. Yoda's mission was to act as a bait: it would appear close to Supremacy's final recorded location tempting Hux to attack it, just like cruiser Endor. The moment Supremacy approached to attack, the Millennium Falcon would shadow it undetected and wait for the Conadi and his son to escape with a stolen spaceship.

Since Conadi's defection had to remain a secret – Conadi had insisted on that and Poe and Leia had agreed – the fewer people they knew about the defection the better. For that reason, Poe had volunteered to pilot Yoda himself and not assign the task to another pilot.

So much micromanagement! So many hours spent every day telling senior officers what to do! Why couldn't they take one ounce of initiative?

"Because you selected them for obedience, not competence," Hux told himself. He sighed. He could sleep better at night knowing his Generals were not planning a coup against him. But occasionally he got frustrated by their incompetence and their tendency to ask permission for even minor things.

For that reason, Hux always welcomed the opportunity to take some direct action instead of micromanaging, such as when an enemy capital ship appeared on the radar.

"Supreme Leader," Captain Phasma said entering the conference room. "Our hyperspace tracker has located an enemy cruiser."

"Close the door and remove your helmet Captain." Phasma did as ordered. The moment she did that, Hux approached her and gave her a kiss on the lips.

"It is so boring telling those idiots what to do the whole time," he said. Phasma smiled. He had told her that story dozens of times.

"Time to break the monotony then Armitage," she said. She only called him Armitage when they were alone. "By the way, I have my platoon of stormtroopers ready for Conadi and his son.”

“Go get them Gwen,” Hux said. He stopped for a few seconds, thinking. General Conadi was smart and since he was an intelligence officer he had probably realized Hux was after him. Perhaps the enemy capital ship was to pick him up when he escaped.

On the other hand … what if the enemy capital ship was just a distraction for Conadi to escape?

“Post stormtroopers to all hangar doors,” Hux ordered Phasma. Phasma nodded and left to execute his order.

“Prepare the energy cannon to fire,” Hux said upon entering the bridge. “Target: the enemy cruiser.”

Inside Yoda, Poe Dameron was smiling. The plan was working so far. Supremacy had used its hyperspace tracker to locate him.

His only fear was the enemy energy cannon. He had read the report about cruiser Endor and its sudden disappearance and he remembered how easily such a weapon had destroyed D'qar base. If the rumors about it were correct, he would be dead before even realizing it. Hopefully, the two defectors had taken care of the cannon as they had promised.

“Fire!” Hux ordered. A First Order lieutenant pressed a button and the Fleet Killer cannon was activated. But it couldn't fire.

“Supreme Commander,” the lieutenant said in a worried tone. “The cannon is not working.”

“Deactivate it and use turbolasers lieutenant,” Hux said in an annoyed tone. “And send technicians to fix it.”

Meanwhile, two men dressed as technicians walked away from the energy cannon area. They looked the part so none cared about their presence there. For the time being, only General Hux and a lieutenant knew about the sabotaged cannon.

“It was so easy,” the youngest one said. “You just have to be confident and pretend you belong.”

“Basic human psychology son,” General Octavius Conadi said. “Let's get to the hangar now. Our spaceship is waiting.” Instinctively, he touched his right pocket where his pistol was hidden.

Poe Dameron took another sip from his thermos with hot coffee – a gift from Amilyn actually – and checked the main panel. Supremacy was behind him and within seconds they would open fire using their advanced turbolasers.

“Time to do what Amilyn did buddy,” Poe told BB-8, his trusted droid and turned the wheel. Within seconds, the spaceship had performed a U-turn and was heading towards Supremacy.

“So predictable,” Hux said when the radar confirmed the U-turn. “Wait for them to get a little closer and blast them to bits.

A second radar signal appeared on the radar console, much smaller than the first one. It was from an X-wing starfighter. Someone was abandoning ship, Hux thought. Too bad it was moving away from Supremacy at a very fast speed. It would have been nice to kill one more enemy pilot. Two seconds later, the X-wing signal disappeared from the radar screen. Cloaking technology, Hux thought, just like with the Resistance transports in Crait.

It was time for the Supremacy turbolasers to engage. Unlike Raddus, Yoda was too small, too slow, and too old to pose any threat. Within twenty seconds the light cruiser was shot to pieces. The turbolasers kept firing until the pieces became very small and totally harmless.

“Cruiser Yoda is gone,” Rose said, looking at the radar screen. “Just as we had planned it.”

“Where is Poe?” Leia asked, a touch of worry in her voice.

“Somewhere out there,” Rose said. “I saw him ejecting from the cruiser and disappearing, which means his cloaking technology is working,” Rose said.

“Good,” Leia said. “Let's be patient now. Our new friends still have work to do.”

Octavius Conadi and his son were walking towards a side corridor when his son suddenly stopped.

“What is it?” the General asked.

“Did you notice we are alone on the corridor? Where is everybody? Weren't people supposed to work here?”

The General shot his son a worried look. “You are right.” He could hear the faint sound of approaching footsteps. “Hux probably sent Phasma to get us. We must hurry.” They started running towards their objective, a small spaceship hangar.

Captain Phasma and her platoon of thirty heavily armed stormtroopers entered the corridor. All of them carried rifles, except two who carried rocket launchers. They were her personal elite unit, the most capable troopers on Supremacy.

“Check everyone,” Phasma ordered. “They are probably disguised as technicians. If you find them, arrest them on the spot. If they resist, stun them. The Supreme Commander wants them alive for interrogation.” All troopers nodded and put their weapons in stun mode.

A few minutes later, the two officers reached their objective, a small starfighter hangar. The entrance to it was open but there were four stormtroopers guarding it. Conadi and his son had to move fast and with precision.

“Just stun them,” the General whispered. The Major nodded and set his gun in stun mode. They approached the four stormtroopers as if nothing happened until they got close and surprised them. In two seconds, all four of them were on the ground, unconscious and the two officers entered the almost deserted hangar. There were only a few technicians there and General Conadi scared them with his pistol and his thermal grenade.

The General moved towards the door, closed and locked it. Meanwhile, the Major entered one of the starfighters and started the preflight sequence.

“OK Rose. Uncloak us,” Leia ordered. As long as the Falcon was cloaked, the Conadis would be unable to locate them. On the other hand, the moment they uncloaked, Hux could also pinpoint their location.

“They are already late General,” Rose said, hesitating. “Perhaps, they won't make it.”

“Rose, if that is the case, they might sent the decryption key as a last ditch effort and the cloaking prevents us from receiving it. We have to uncloak anyway.” 

“You are right General,” Rose said, no longer hesitating. She took a deep breath and pressed a button in front of her. The Falcon uncloaked.

“There is another spaceship Supreme Commander,” the young officer said.

Hux looked at the radar screen. A small spaceship was at their port side. How had it gotten there without the Supremacy radars noticing it?

“A cloaked spaceship,” Hux said. “Send a squadron of starfighters to destroy it,” he ordered and checked his datapad. Phasma had located the hangar where the two officers were.

Phasma looked at the four unconscious stormtroopers outside the door and gestured at her two troopers with the rocket launchers. Both nodded and stepped forward while others in her platoon carried the unconscious stormtroopers away.

“Fire,” she said and the troopers hit the door with their rockets. The door was smashed to pieces.

“Dammit,” the young man said when he heard the explosion. “We won't make it.”

“Perhaps not,” General Conadi said. They had come that close to success and now they had failed.

“This is Captain Phasma! You are surrounded!” Both men recognized the characteristic voice of Hux's most trusted officer.

“Will we make it?” the son asked.

“No, we won't,” the father said. “So let us embrace for the final time.” The father and son hugged each other.

They could not escape but they could still give the Resistance a fighting chance, the chance to stop the monstrosities of the First Order. General Conadi set his datapad communications link to a specific prearranged frequency and pressed some buttons, allowing the decryption key to be broadcast to the Resistance.

The stormtroopers were very close now. The young man raised his blaster and fired upon them. His aim was true and he managed to hit one on the chest, stunning him. However, the other stormtroopers returned fire, stunning him as well.

The General looked at his son. He was unconscious but still breathing. They needed them for interrogation, he thought. They would torture him or even worse torture his son in front of him until they learned everything.

“Forgive me my son,” the General said.

The older man removed the thermal grenade from his pocket and pulled its pin off, arming it. The moment he let it drop …

Five heavily armed stormtroopers approached him. The General stood up, holding the grenade with his left hand. The stormtroopers froze. If they shot him, or moved forward or backward, he could drop the grenade and kill them all.

“What are you waiting for?” Phasma's voice came from the intercom.

“The General is holding a thermal grenade,” one of the troopers replied. “It is armed.”

The General calmly looked at the stormtroopers, stood to attention, and gave them a military salute.

“It is not your day to die gentlemen,” the General said and gestured for them to retreat. The five stormtroopers stood to attention, saluted the General, and left, grateful they would survive.

“What is the matter?” Phasma asked when she saw them retreating. Two seconds later, an explosion answered her question. General Octavius Conadi and his son were gone.

“I have received data,” Rose said.

“Is it the decryption key?” Leia asked.

“I don't know,” Rose said. “We must go to the base to analyze them.” Suddenly an alarm sounded inside the Millennium Falcon.

“Incoming TIE fighters!” C-3PO shouted.

“Dammit, they found us!” Leia said. The Millennium Falcon started turning away from Supremacy.

“Take the left gun Rose,” Leia ordered. “I will take the right one.” Rose hesitated but only for a second. A few seconds later, she was sitting on a gunner's position, activating the quad anti-aircraft gun in front of her.

“You too,” Leia said addressing C-3PO. The droid looked at her, confused.

“General, I don't have the specific training for...” Leia cut him short.

“Now C-3PO!” Leia ordered. The droid immediately rushed to an available gun position and activated the gun.

“Hopefully, I won't make a fool of myself,” C-3PO whispered.

Two minutes later, the first TIE fighter appeared. At the same time, a thick blue laser beam crossed the empty space a few hundred meters to their right. In addition, one of the enemy escort capital ships turned to face them.

“Better and better,” Leia said. “Rose, have you stored the data?”

“Yes, General. But we have to survive to ...” She looked at her gun sights. “Incoming missiles!” she screamed.

Chewie had already seen the missiles on his radar screen. Fortunately, the enemy had fired them from too far away and he easily evaded them. But the enemy kept getting closer.

“We need to jump to hyperspace Chewie!” Leia said in a loud voice. Chewie told her how much time that would take.

“Three minutes?” Leia said. “I hope we survive that long!”

Out of the twelve enemy starfighters hunting them, the six that carried missiles were relatively slow and the Millennium Falcon easily outrun them. Unfortunately, the other six were faster than the Falcon and two of them were already close enough to start firing. Leia and Rose returned fire, while Chewie maneuvered the Falcon to make it a harder target for the enemies to hit. On the minus side, that made Leia's and Rose's aim harder.

“I hate it when we do that!” Rose said. She wasn't a trained gunner and her aim was still bad, made worse by Chewie's maneuvers. Leia was also a bad shot and despite her best efforts, she failed to hit the enemy starfighters.

Four more enemy starfighters appeared. Two of them tried to flank the Falcon from the left and the other two from the right. The two already chasing the Falcon kept firing but Chewie's maneuvers made them miss. Chewie growled again.

“Two minutes?” Leia asked while firing her quad plasma anti-aircraft guns. She checked to her right. The two fighters trying to flank them from her direction were slightly ahead of them and they were turning to face them. C-3PO started firing at them but its aim was poor – it was a protocol droid after all – and its shots missed as well.

“Where are you Poe?” Leia whispered. She knew Poe Dameron was somewhere out there, in a specially modified starfighter with cloaking and a special exhaust filter that made thermal detection next to impossible. But where was he?

Half a minute passed. The two enemy starfighters from the right turned towards the Falcon. Within seconds, the two from the left would do the same.

“Come on Poe. Come on!” The situation was critical when suddenly … one enemy TIE fighter burst into flames, much to Rose's surprise.

“Missed me yet?” a voice in the intercom said. It was Poe Dameron.

Two seconds later, the second TIE fighter trying to flank them from Rose's side was gone as well. Chewie immediately turned the spaceship to the left in the area where the two enemy fighters had been. The other four TIE fighter pilots, surprised by the sudden turn of events hesitated. Leia took advantage of the enemy hesitation, took very careful aim and blasted one the enemy starfighters with her quad guns.

One minute for the hyperspace jump. The three remaining enemy pilots, realizing they had lost half their strength in about thirty seconds decided to retreat. When the minute passed, the Millennium Falcon and Dameron's X-wing fighter entered hyperspace and exited above the Outer Rim planet where the hidden Resistance base was located. A few hours later, both spaceships were safely inside the base hangar.

“Did our friends make it?” Poe asked Leia the moment he exited his starfighter.

“No,” Leia replied. “But they sent us a farewell gift, something that looks like a decryption key.”

“Let us see what Q is going to say,” Poe said. Leia, Poe, Rose, Chewie, C-3PO and R2 headed for his lab. Hopefully, the key to understand and defeat the First Order was there.


	10. The frightening truth and a plan of action

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hux and Phasma discuss about Conadi's death but they fail to realize he has provided the Resistance with data.
> 
> After analyzing the data, Q and Rose realize the First Order have developed powerful technologies to crush all opposition and rule the Galaxy for good and inform Poe and Leia.
> 
> After learning about the First Order plans, Poe develops a plan of action that Leia approves, contacts Q to obtain gadgets for his mission and flies to hyperspace with his trusted droid BB-8.

The moment Captain Phasma entered Hux's luxurious quarters, an old man approached her. Phasma recognized him as one of Hux's personal servants. 

“The Supreme Commander is practicing in his private shooting-range,” the servant said. “He is expecting you there.” After walking through a long corridor and descending a flight of stairs, she reached the long and wide area Hux used as his personal shooting-range.

When Phasma entered the shooting-range, Hux was there, practicing his quick-drawing skills. He drew his blaster as fast as he could, fired one shot, then holstered it to try again. His 'target' was a mannequin dressed like a Resistance officer with its face resembled Poe Dameron, Hux's archenemy. 

Phasma observed there were no holes on the wall around the mannequin while the mannequin was full of them. Armitage Hux was a really good shot. 

“Hello Gwen,” Hux said, holstering his pistol. 

“Hello Armitage. How is your practice going?” she asked.

“Better and better. I become faster and more accurate every day.”

“That's great news,” she said. 

“So what happened with Conadi?” Hux asked, getting to business. 

“Conadi sabotaged the FK gun, and he and his son tried to escape in a starfighter. Five of my troopers cornered him, but he threatened them with a grenade. He allowed them to leave, but then he used the grenade to kill himself and his son.”

“Dammit,” Hux said. “I wanted to interrogate him. What about his datapad?”

“His datapad was full of data but it would take him days to transmit them all.”

“He wanted to give the data in person,” Hux said. “They were the ticket for his defection. Did he transmit anything?”

“Just a few words,” Phasma said. “According to my research, they are from the lyrics of a spy film soundtrack.”

“A spy film? That suits Conadi fine,” Hux said. He thought it for a second. “The moment he transmitted them, the Resistance spaceship left. It was Conadi's abort signal.”

“So it seems,” Phasma agreed.

What Hux and Phasma never realized was that the Resistance already had Conadi's data: his son had given them — in encrypted form — to Poe in Cloud City. The data in Conadi's datapad were just a red herring to convince the First Order no classified intel had leaked. Finally, the words in his final message were not an abort signal but the key to decrypt the data.

Q sat in front of his computer and typed Conadi's decryption key, smiling. “You were a fan of 007 too Octavius,” he told himself.

“He always runs while others walk.  
He acts while other men just talk.  
He looks at this world and wants it all  
So he strikes … like Thunderball.”

These were the words Conadi had transmitted to the Resistance. They were from 'Thunderball', a James Bond film. As soon as Q had finished typing, he pressed a button on the keyboard and waited.

A few minutes later, the data folders were unlocked one by one. They covered many topics from the Supremacy schematics to the First Order grand strategy. One folder seemed more prominent than others though. It was named 'Shipyard Four' and had a more bright color than the rest. According to intelligence the Resistance allies had gathered, Shipyard Four was both Kylo Ren's headquarters and the place where the most secret projects of the First Order were developed.

Clicking on the folder, Q opened it and examined its contents. The more he read though, the more worried he became. What were they building there?

“Oh shit,” Q finally said. Rose who was also in the lab looked at him, a worried look on her face.

“Are you alright Major?”

“No, I am not Rose,” he replied. “Look for yourself.” And so she did.

“Dammit,” she said after a few minutes, scared. “We must inform Admiral Dameron and General Organa immediately!”

“I know Rose,” Q replied. “I will prepare some notes for them. Find them and tell them to go to the conference room now.”

Poe Dameron, Finn, and Poe's trusted droid BB-8 were in the base firing range. Poe was practicing quick-drawing with his blaster. Dameron's target was a big picture of Armitage Hux, Poe's archenemy. Taking a deep breath, Poe quick-drew his blaster and fired once against his target.

"Excellent shot buddy," Finn commented when he saw the results. "You hit my old boss between the eyes."

"Thanks Finn. Who knows? I might do it for real one day." Finn was about to reply when he heard the door opening and saw Rose entering.

"Thank you all for coming," Q said when Leia entered the room. Rose and Poe were already sitting there.

"What is the matter Major?" Leia asked. "Did you discover something important with the data?"

"Yes," Q replied. "For starters, how familiar are you with the Fleet Killer cannon?"

"It is a very powerful energy cannon," Poe said, "capable of causing massive damage. Two shots from that blew the D'qar base up and one shot was enough to vaporize cruiser Endor."

"Correct," Rose said. "The FK cannons were a low priority project for the First Order because they had Starkiller Base for massive firepower. They only created a single capital ship with two such cannons, mostly for experimental purposes. But things have changed. After the loss of Starkiller and after Kylo Ren took over as Supreme Leader, they started building more such cannons in Shipyard Four, their most secretive military factory."

"Oh no," Leia said. "At least the Death Star was in one place. It could only attack one planet at any given time. How do you defend against a hundred superweapons?" Everyone fell silent upon realizing that.

"I am afraid there is something even worse than that," Q said.

"What could be worse than a factory of FK cannons?" Leia asked.

"A factory of hyperspace trackers," Q said.

"A WHAT?" Poe and Leia said in unison.

"According to Conadi's data," Rose said, "they have extensively tested their hyperspace tracker prototype in Supremacy and have built a factory in Shipyard Four to create multiple copies of it," Rose said.

"But some of their capital ships already have hyperspace trackers," Leia commented.

"True," Rose said, "but they are small and can only cover small areas. Only the one in Supremacy is powerful enough to cover vast areas in hyperspace."

Since only big hyperspace trackers were effective, the First Order planned to create specialized 'tracker ships'. In essence, they would remove the starfighers and walkers and use the internal hangar space to install the tracker. They planned to have one such spaceship to accompany every capital ship formation.

In addition, they were to modify other capital ships to carry one FK cannon each. Such ships would also accompany capital ship formations adding their devastating firepower to the mix.

Finally, after the constant ramming attacks, the First Order took defensive measures. They increased the size of their formations from four to eight capital ships, they reinforced their internal structure, they upgraded their energy shields and they added more defensive turbolasers.

"To find internal volume for the modifications," Q said, "they removed the walkers and most of the stormtroopers on board. But that's a small price to pay to reduce their casualties.."

Everyone remained speechless for some minutes. The First Order could easily create a hundred such groups and use them to destroy every spaceship bigger than the Millennium Falcon. Afterwards, the FK ships would bombard everyone who resisted from orbit. It was a nightmarish scenario ... but also a realistic one.

"And we won't be able to ram them," Poe said breaking the silence, "because the rest of the ships in the formation will use their additional firepower to blow our spaceships up before they reach them."

"How much time do we have before the FK cannons and the trackers are ready?" Leia asked.

"According to the data ... less than four weeks," Q said grimly.

After the meeting was over, Poe entered his office and closed the door. He was determined to find a solution. None was to talk to him unless the base was under attack. He had a lot of thinking and analysis to do. Some facts didn't add up.

One, Octavius Conadi was a really competent officer and he was a General. He had all the reason to remain with the First Order. So why did he want to defect? Was he afraid for his life?Two, Poe knew the First Order tactics had deteriorated during the last months. They had become too rigid, too conservative and too unimaginative. Why had that happened?

Three, Amilyn was alive. Poe was very happy about that of course but the question remained: why? She had rammed Supremacy and she had killed Supreme Leader Snoke in the process. Why had they kept her alive and not executed her as punishment for killing their leader? What would they earn from that?

Four, what happens if you give FK cannons and trackers to an officer and he decides to mutiny? You die. It is that simple. For that reason you need very loyal officers. Besides, you don't need refined tactics or skills or competence to use the new systems: the tracker locates the target and the cannon blows it up. Even a child can do that.Fifth, the moment Snoke died, Ren and Hux became the new bosses. Was it a coincidence? Or had they somehow engineered things? Only the two of them – or Amilyn – could answer that question.

In other words, Hux and Ren probably conspired to kill Snoke and purged the First Order from competent officers like Conadi in order both to avoid mutinies and because in the long run they didn't need competence. Tracker and energy cannon technology would win the war for them.

"And they kept Amilyn alive to torture her and use her 'confessions' as a way to frame competent officers," Poe told himself.

"So where is the opportunity here?" Poe asked himself.

A wise emperor and philosopher had once said: "The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way, becomes the way." The meaning was that when you face an obstacle, you must find weaknesses in it. Afterwards, you exploit them to your benefit.

Taking the above into account, and after many more hours of thinking and analysis, a plan emerged. It needed more refinement of course but in Poe's mind, it was the only way to defeat the First Order for good.

With those thoughts in mind, Poe took his notes and visited Leia's office. He had a lot to tell her.

"So, the first part of your plan is for you to infiltrate Supremacy and free Amilyn," Leia said when Poe finished outlining his plan.

"That's right Leia."

"This is very noble but also very risky Poe. If they capture you, they will Force-torture you to learn the ideas you presented to me now and where our headquarters are."

"It is a necessary part of the plan and we hit two birds with one stone. We free Amilyn and sabotage them. And the risks are not that great. My ideas are only outlines so they won't learn that much. Q and Rose can develop them during my absence."

"OK Poe, I will have Q and Rose do that."

"Moreover, for the plan to work," Poe said, "our people must be drilled to it. So we will evacuate our headquarters for a full scale drill according to Q's and Rose's refined plan. Even if they get me alive and I talk, they will only find empty buildings to attack."

Leia agreed to do exactly that and they focused on how Poe would infiltrate Supremacy. Fortunately, Conadi had provided them with a plan, the same plan his son had used to leave the spaceship, go to Cloud City to meet Poe and then return undetected.

"Hopefully," Poe said, "there won't be any smelly trash compactors with monsters for me and Amilyn to be trapped into," referring to Leia's escape from the Death Star when she, Luke Skywalker and Han Solo had fallen to one.

Leia permitted herself a smile. "Hopefully. And Amilyn will certainly be friendlier than me when Han and Luke rescued me."

"That is why I have to go Leia. It is better for her to come across a familiar face. I know about the risks involved but there is no other way."

"You are right on that Poe," Leia said remembering her own rescue. "Although my problem back then was not lack of familiarity. It was the fact Han and Luke had no plan of action. Fortunately, you are more organized than them."

"Thank you Leia," Poe said and left her office. His next stop would be in Q's lab.

“Hello Q,” Poe said.

“Hello 007,” came the reply.

“What is the purpose of your visit 007?” Q asked, feigning ignorance. (Leia had already sent C-3PO to inform him).

Q tries to keep the atmosphere pleasant, Poe thought. He decided to play along (he knew about C-3PO after all). It was the best way to keep morale high.

“Oh, the usual stuff. Infiltrating the enemy, rescuing the damsel in distress, and blowing things up.”

“You are really in luck 007. I have some specialized equipment for you.”

“I am amazed Q,” Poe said in mock surprise.

“For starters, this datapad. It has hacking software installed. It also contains stolen passwords courtesy of Conadi, plus of course the schematics of Supremacy.”

“Pretty useful,” Poe commented. “What else?”

“This is a special watch,” Q said, presenting him with an ordinary looking wristwatch. “It has two functions. It fires tranquilizer darts, and ... it shows you the time!” Poe really liked Q's unconventional sense of humor.

“Just like Moonraker,” Poe commented, referring to a James Bond film where 007 had successfully used a watch like that to save his life.

“Exactly. Last but not least, the briefcase,” Q said presenting Poe with a big, dark gray, rectangular, and heavy briefcase, gesturing for him to open it. Poe correctly guessed the three digit code that opened it was '007'.

There was an envelope inside it containing cash and a fake ID card for a fictional First Order officer. To Poe's amusement, the ID card with his photo on identified him as Commander James Bond.

“Nice touch Q,” Poe said. “What about those bars?” he asked referring to a number of black rectangular bars covering most of the briefcase interior.

“Do you remember the Death Star and how Luke Skywalker destroyed it?”

“Of course. We studied the attack in the flight academy. He used proton torpedoes because they had a lot of destructive power for their small weight and volume.”

“Exactly. These bars are proton bombs. They are light, compact, and powerful. All of them have a timer and some of them can also be activated remotely with your datapad.”

After analyzing the gadgets, Q and 007 analyzed Poe's infiltration plan.

“The tracker is a new piece of machinery and we don't know much about it,” Q said. “We don't know its weak points to place explosives there and even Conadi had no access to its schematics. In addition, it is the most heavily guarded part of the spaceship. Last but not least, it has its own backup life support system and an additional armor layer for extra protection.”

“I agree Q,” Poe said. “So we stick to the original plan.” They reviewed the plan again. It could work but only if two people worked in close cooperation and coordination.

“You will be on your own there,” Boothroyd said. “We can only send one infiltrator. If you don't free Amilyn, you are in big trouble.”

“I know. But I will free her and we will succeed together,” Poe said, a confident smile on his face. “After all, Amilyn knows how to blow things up.”

“Of course she does. She is my cousin, and I was the one who introduced her in the fine art of sabotage,” Q said, a proud smile on his face.

The meeting ended and Poe Dameron and Geoffrey Boothroyd shook hands. 

“Good luck 007. And bring Amilyn back safe.”

“Thank you Q. I will.”

Twenty minutes later, Poe Dameron took off from the hidden Resistance base. Only BB-8, his personal astromech droid, accompanied him.

“We are on a mission again. Are you happy buddy?” The droid remained silent.

“What is it? Is it because Rose painted you black?” BB-8 bleeped.

“It is just a disguise buddy,” Poe said. “First Order droids are mostly black and we need to blend in. I will wear a First Order uniform as well.” The droid remained silent.

“We are on a mission to save Amilyn and blow things up … big, enemy things. And lots of them!” This time BB-8 gave an enthusiastic bleep.

“That's the spirit buddy! OK, get ready.” And with those words, they jumped to hyperspace.


	11. Kylo Ren in Ahch-To

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo Ren reaches Ahch-To and tries to learn as much as he can about the Artifact. 
> 
> The Force Ghost of Luke Skywalker visits Leia to inform her about Kylo and about the secret that will help them get the Artifact. Leia rushes to inform Rey.
> 
> Meanwhile, Poe Dameron faces the first challenge in his attempt to infiltrate the First Order.  
> 

“Faster,” Kylo Ren ordered. “Faster. And attack together.” The two Knights of Ren nodded at their leader's request and attacked at a faster pace and in a more coordinated way.

To keep his edge, Kylo trained on a daily basis with the two Knights who accompanied him. (He had left the other two onboard Supremacy both to provide him with daily reports about the First Order military activities and to remind Hux he should not become too ambitious.) As a bonus, training made him relax from the daily bureaucratic struggles he faced as Supreme Leader.

Kylo Ren had spent a lot of time trying to better run the First Order, something much harder and much more complex than he had initially imagined. Apparently Snoke had been too fond of micromanagement, forcing every bureaucrat to take zero initiative.

Kylo soon realized that if he didn't allow some autonomy to the bureaucrats, he would have to micromanage like Snoke. There would be no time left for him to find the Artifact or establish an Order of Force users loyal to him.

Kylo Ren had spent weeks trying to locate the Artifact. To do so, he had used the vast resources of the First Order, Luke Skywalker's stolen diary – although he had soon realized the Jedi Master had filled it with fake information – and lots of hired help in the form of bounty hunters and mercenaries.

In any case, they were getting closer to their destination, the place where a Jedi Master had spent the last years of his life … and perhaps the place that could prove itself the key to the Artifact!

A few hours later ...

“Supreme Leader?” an officer said, entering Kylo Ren's throne room. “We have reached Ahch-To.”

“Very well,” Kylo Ren said.

Supreme Leader Kylo Ren stood up from his throne, picked his lightsaber up and headed for the bridge. As soon as he entered it, all officers and men stood up and waited in attention.

“Long lives Supreme Leader Ren! The bridge crew of Darth Vader salute you!” all of them shouted in unison. It was no accident Kylo Ren had named his personal capital ship like that. Darth Vader had been more than Ren's grandfather. He had been a source of inspiration for him.

“All right Commander,” Ren said addressing the commanding officer of Vader. “Talk to me.”

“Supreme Leader, we have reached Ahch-To and we have sent TIE fighters to scan the area around the island you have mentioned. No signs of enemy defenses exist. Ahch-To is a water planet with only a handful of small islands here and there with very few inhabitants.”

“What about those inhabitants?”

“According to our intelligence, they appear to be primitive, mostly unarmed, and they don't seem to be a threat.”

“Very well. Have my transport ready. I am going down.”

A few minutes later, three transports left Vader. Two of them carried stormtroopers. The third one carried Kylo Ren, his elite bodyguards and one Knight of Ren. Two squadrons of TIE fighters escorted them.

As soon as they landed on the small island and exited the transports, the stormtroopers entered the huts of the short humanoid creatures that lived in them and gathered them next to the beach. Half of the troopers guarded them and the other made a thorough search of the huts.

At the same time, Kylo Ren and his escort moved to the biggest hut on the island, big enough to accommodate a human being. It had been Luke Skywalker's residence for five years. Who knew how many of his secrets were still there?

Kylo Ren looked at the closed door in front of him. Was it locked? Was it booby trapped? Who knew? Holding his lightsaber with his right hand, he raised his left arm and focused on the door, using the Force to pull it. The group tensed expecting to see someone or something making a hasty exit from the hut. The Knight of Ren and the four bodyguards activated their lightsabers, ready to defend themselves and the Supreme Leader.

In the end nothing happened. The door fell to the ground and Kylo Ren used the Force to throw it away to the ocean. Afterwards, he looked at the two bodyguards on his left and gestured to the entrance. Both of them nodded and carefully entered the hut searching for hidden threats.

A few minutes later, the bodyguards returned, giving the all clear sign. Kylo Ren moved towards the hut, gesturing to his escort not to follow him. As soon as he entered, Kylo Ren looked around. “Time to learn your secrets Luke Skywalker,” he said, “my beloved uncle.” He said the last words with deep irony and contempt.

A few minutes later, Kylo Ren exited Luke Skywalker's hut, disappointed. He had hoped he would find the Artifact there or at least clues about is location. But he had found nothing.

Apart from that, he had found nothing else of interest: no journal, no secret Jedi texts for him to study, and no clue about other Jedi secrets. The only things he found were rotten fish and vegetables, some cooking equipment, and some burned pieces of paper. Luke Skywalker had probably realized his astral projection trick on Crait was going to kill him and he had destroyed everything just in case.

Kylo Ren and his escort moved towards the cave where the ancient Jedi texts had been hidden for millennia. Perhaps the old master had hesitated to destroy the heritage of thousands of years.

What a disappointment! There was nothing there as well, no ancient books, no ancient texts, only some ancient wall paintings that Kylo Ren could not understand. Luke Skywalker had done the unthinkable: he had destroyed the texts. Or perhaps … that girl Rey had taken them!

Disappointed, Supreme Leader Ren gestured for his escort not to follow him and walked towards a white rectangular rock overlooking the sea. It was man made, perhaps by Skywalker himself, the place someone would sit, contemplate the Universe, concentrate on the Force, and perhaps project himself half a Galaxy away.

Kylo reached the edge of the cliff and put his gloved hands on the rock. The moment he touched it, he felt a small vibration to his body.

“You have finally found my place Ben,” a voice next to him whispered. Kylo Ren recognized the voice. He turned. The Force Ghost of Luke Skywalker was facing him.

“Hello uncle,” he said, a deep irony in his voice. “One of your tricks again? Like the one you used the last time we met?”

“It was not a trick on Crait. Have you forgotten so fast Ben? Have you forgotten your lightsabers couldn't harm me? Have you forgotten the two Knights of Ren I killed that day? Or have you forgotten that you and your buddy Hux were at my mercy till the Resistance escaped unharmed?”

“You died that day uncle,” Kylo Ren said. “Your trick was good but it could only work once. You are harmless now. You can't Force project yourself and you can't Force choke or Force pull anyone. You are dead!”

“Trust me Ben, I am not harmless. Force or no Force, I can still teach others how they can be harmful! Goodbye!” And just like that, he vanished into thin air.  
“Where is the Artifact?” Kylo shouted. But Luke Skywalker was already gone.

Kylo Ren was about to leave when his right foot stepped on something. He was about to kick it when he realized what it was. It was what remained from Luke's prosthetic right arm, the one he had lost when Darth Vader had cut it with his lightsaber during their duel in Cloud City.

Kylo Ren picked up the remains of the arm and examined them. The synthetic skin was gone and only the metallic interior remained. He looked at it, undecided. Should he throw it away and let the water corrode it or should he keep it as a trophy of Vader's victory against a Jedi? After some contemplation, he picked it up and returned to his escort.

A few minutes later, he was back to his transport ready to go to his spaceship. He gestured for a First Order officer to approach him.

“What have you found?” Kylo Ren asked.

“Nothing so far Supreme Leader. We have searched the huts, the caves, we have even brought X-ray machines to better search everything but so far nothing.”

Kylo Ren thought for a second. “Have you interrogated the locals?”

“Yes, Supreme Leader. They all say they never talked to Luke Skywalker and he never talked to them. They also say he never gave them anything to hide.”

Kylo Ren was disappointed. He had expected a better answer than that. On the other hand, Luke Skywalker had indeed lived in Ahch-To, something Kylo Ren hadn't known just a few weeks ago. Kylo could feel it: he was getting closer.

“You will stay here,” Kylo said addressing the Knight of Ren who escorted him. 

“Make a second search, more thorough this time. Take photographs of the temple paintings for further analysis. And interrogate the locals again. Use the Force on them if you have to.”

Kylo Ren entered his transport. The Knight of Ren and a platoon of stormtroopers remained to comply with the Supreme Leader's order.

“And when you finish,” Kylo Ren said before his transport door closed, “kill them. Burn their huts and their possessions and put their corpses in Luke Skywalker's hut. Then burn his hut as well.”

Leia checked the time. It was late but she couldn't sleep. The memories of the past still haunted her.

She remembered the day so well. She had just returned home after her humiliating resignation from the Senate, publicly admitting the hard truth to hundreds of Senators: her true father had been Darth Vader himself.

And things were going to get much worse very soon ...

She remembered sending Amilyn Holdo to ask Luke Skywalker to join them ... only for Amilyn to return a few days later with tears in her eyes.

"There was nothing left Leia," Amilyn had said, crying. "Only burned ruins and graves."

"Was Ben ... was Luke ... " Leia had asked, barely able to speak.

"No Leia," Amilyn had replied. "I checked the names on the graves. They both appear to be alive."

Soon, they learned the truth. It had been Ben Solo who had led six other students to slaughter everyone else in the Jedi temple. A few years later, the six students led by Ben would later call themselves the Knights of Ren and Ben himself would become their leader and call himself Kylo Ren.

She remembered the door opening and Han Solo and Chewie entering the room. Immediately, Leia's expression hardened, something Amilyn immediately noticed. Another fierce argument was about to begin. Amilyn looked at Chewie and gave him a knowing nod. Chewie nodded back. As the years passed, Han's and Leia's arguments were getting worse and worse and Chewie and Amilyn could barely control them.

"Oh, there you are," Leia had said in a sarcastic tone. "On time as always."

"You forgot to send me a memo princess," Han Solo had replied in an equally sarcastic tone.

The shouting match soon followed.

"You were always away Han. Chasing one meaningless cargo after another." That had infuriated Han.

"You were always away Leia. Having a meaningless political career that helped none and accomplished nothing." That had infuriated Leia.

Despite Amilyn's and Chewie's best efforts to help, Han had left. Chewie had followed him and Amilyn stayed with Leia.

It had taken Leia years to stop blaming Luke and Han about her son. Granted, Han had been absent most of the time and Luke could have been more careful – after all he was a Jedi Master – but she hadn't been the best mother either. She had to admit Han had been correct: she had spent so much time in the Senate, neglecting her son, and what had she accomplished? Nothing!

Besides, the worst offender had been Ben himself: when you are an adult, there are no excuses for your behavior. Ben had killed people and he was fully responsible for that.

In the end, Han and Leia had met each other a few hours after the destruction of the Hosnian System. Both had regretted the harsh words they had said. Both had apologized and forgiven each other. But alas, Han Solo had soon died. And the worst part? It had been their son Ben who had killed him.

"At least you forgave me Han," Leia said in tears. "I wish you could forgive me as well Luke," Leia said.

To her amazement, a familiar voice replied. "I wish you could forgive me as well Leia."

Leia looked at the figure opposite her. It was the Force Ghost of Luke Skywalker.

"I am sorry for all those years. I believed you had left us all," Leia said. "And I kept accusing you for that."

"I am so sorry Leia," Luke said. "Snoke had manipulated my mind. It was all my fault for not realizing that earlier. I became too self-absorbed it seems, too arrogant."

"That makes two of us Luke," she said with a bitter smile.

"I had to cut myself from the Force. If Snoke had found me, he would have come for you as well. I had to leave for your safety. For you, Han, Chewie ... and countless people in the Galaxy."

"I know Luke, I know," Leia said. "I am so sorry for doubting you. A Jedi Master never gives up. And I am so sorry I was never a good mother for Ben."

Luke's expression hardened. "I know Ben is your son. I know Ben was my nephew. But I also know he was an adult when he killed the other students and joined the First Order. He has to take ownership for what he did."

Leia looked at Luke, tears in her eyes. "I know Luke, I know. But perhaps Ben can redeem himself. Our own father was Darth Vader and in the end he redeemed himself, remember?"

"Of course," Luke replied. "After all, I was there when our father killed Palpatine. But will Ben do the same?"

"I don't know anymore," Leia said with tears in her eyes. "But if his death prevents millions or billions of deaths, he will have to go. It will break my heart but I will accept it ... even if I have to do it myself."

Luke Skywalker looked at his sister and nodded. There was a war going on and if Ben had to die to prevent innocents from losing their lives, so be it. He had few hopes for him anyway. Ben had killed his own boss but not to end the war. He had killed Snoke in order to take his place.

The discussion moved to Han Solo. Leia was in tears for letting him go and not trying to understand him. "If only I had been less of a jerk. I was almost fifty after all, not nineteen!"

"I know Leia. Han was mostly to blame though," Luke said. "He left and never came back. Han was not the type who settles down."

"I made him leave Luke," she said in tears.

The conversation continued with other matters. Leia told Luke about Amilyn, Poe, their relationship – something Luke happily approved – and Luke told Leia about Rey's Jedi training.

"Rey is a good student but she is still without patience. She is also still very emotional," Luke said. "When she was in Ahch-To, she panicked when she heard my father was Darth Vader and drew her lightsaber. We had to duel."

"Who won?" Leia asked. Had Rey bested a Jedi Master?

"I did, but she was too strong in the Force. I admit I cheated a little. I tricked her using a Force projection, like the one I used on Crait," Luke said with a crooked smile.

"You Luke to cheat? A Jedi?" Leia said in mock disbelief.

"Come on Leia. As a diplomat and a politician you know about that," Luke replied in mock accusation. Both burst into laughter. They were once more beloved like the old times.

"I admit it is not the only trick I've played on Rey," Luke said.

"What do you mean Luke?"

"I know more about the Artifact than what I've told her. But if I told her more, she might rush to find it and get into trouble."

"I understand. Rey is the most valuable person in the Galaxy now," Leia replied. "If she dies we say goodbye to the Jedi Order. Rey should start searching only if the First Order make progress." Leia looked at her brother, fear in her eyes.

"Don't tell me they have Luke," she said. Luke lowered his head.

"I saw Ben in Ahch-To Leia. How did he find that place? I had never written a single word in my diary about that. Ahch-To was a place forgotten even by legendary Jedi. Nobody visited it anymore.

"They are getting closer Leia. Who knows what they will find when they use the Force to interrogate the locals. The time has come for Rey to act. It is time for her to learn the secret I was keeping from her."

"What is the secret Luke?"

"Has Rey told you about the two Jedi who knew where the two pieces of the Artifact were?"

"Yes Luke. They passed the secret to two others who in turn passed it to two more in an unbroken chain of knowledge. Until Palpatine issued Order 66 and the last links of the two chains were broken."

"No Leia. One of the two chains never broke, not even after the Great Jedi Purge. The Jedi holding the secret survived the Purge and actually made his own research about the other part of the Artifact. That is the secret you must tell Rey."

"Who was that Jedi Luke?" Luke told her.

Yes, Leia thought. He was not the smartest, not the most skilled with the lightsaber, not the strongest in the Force. But he was the strongest in character and that was what really mattered.

"That makes perfect sense Luke."

"I must go now Leia. But I will be back. Goodbye ... and may the Force be with you."

"May the Force be with you Luke," Leia said while the Ghost of her brother disappeared.

There was no time to waste now. As soon as Luke was gone, Leia stood up and went to the hangar where the Millennium Falcon was. Chewie and R2-D2 the droid were inside it.

"Chewie," Leia said. "I have an important assignment for you." Chewie growled.  
"How important? Well, if you fail, the First Order will conquer the Galaxy and kill us all," Leia replied. Chewie was shocked.

"Chewie, I need you to prepare the Falcon for immediate take off. And one more thing ..." Leia said and whispered Chewie something. The wookie nodded.

Leia's next stop was outside Finn and Rey's quarters. She was certain Finn would volunteer to join Rey. That was not a problem though. On the contrary, Poe had insisted Finn was a person of excellent character and excellent combat skills and Leia had no reason to doubt Dameron's judgment.

"Come in," Rey said when Leia knocked the door.

"Rey, Finn," Leia said upon entering. "I have some very important news for you."

"We cannot wait to defeat the First Order and search for the Artifact later, can we?" Rey asked as soon as Leia had finished her briefing.

"No, Rey. One, because we might lose. And two, if we wait, the First Order will obtain it first."

"If that is the case, I shall go and find it General. But I don't know where to start. Did Master Skywalker say where anything about that?"

"He did Rey," Leia said. "Chewie will tell you the details when you take off."  
"I want to come with Rey," Finn said.

"I knew you would say that Finn," Leia said. "You may join her."

"Will Poe join us as well?" Finn asked.

"No, I am afraid Admiral Dameron is otherwise occupied ..."

"This is Commander Bond ... from military intelligence," Poe told the First Order Major in front of him, offering him his fake ID card. He was sharply dressed as a First Order Commander, his uniform perfectly ironed. Hopefully, the infiltration route he was following – the same as Conadi had used – had not been compromised.

"Your ID says so Commander," the Major replied. "So, where do you wish to go and why?" They were on a planet occupied by the First Order and the Major was part of the intelligence network recently established on the planet.

"I must go to Supremacy to inform the top brass about serious enemy developments."

"I am afraid this is a difficult and time-consuming process Commander," the Major said. Poe got the hint. The Major didn't believe the developments were that serious, he simply thought 'Commander Bond' was a careerist who wanted to show off to get a quick promotion.

Poe opened his briefcase, withdrew an envelope and put it on the Major's desk. "I am sure that when you examine the intel contained in the envelope, you will understand the gravity of the situation."

"Let me see it Commander," the Major said, feigning interest. They both knew what the envelope contained.

"Of course Major," Poe said knowingly, and left the room. When Poe left, the Major opened the envelope. As he had expected, it contained a vast sum of money.

It was funny, Poe thought while waiting outside the room. It was one thing if your plans failed because Supreme Commander Hux sent capital ships to stop a major Resistance attack. At least you can say you failed with dignity, fighting superior forces. It was another thing if the plan went to hell because you failed to bribe a First Order officer. The latter case was pure humiliation.

Two minutes later, the door opened and the Major appeared, gesturing for 'Bond' to enter the room. Poe did exactly that, noticing the envelope had 'mysteriously' disappeared.

"Your intel is of high importance Commander," the Major said. "I will arrange the matter immediately."

"I am really grateful Major. I will not forget that," Poe said. The Major nodded, knowing the double meaning of Poe's comment: "You can ask a favor in return" but also "if they get me, I won't forget to rattle you to help myself get a lower sentence." A few minutes later, Poe was back in his transport with the desired coordinates for Supremacy.

"Good news buddy," Poe said when they took off. "We are back in business. Time to chew bubblegum and kick ass!" The droid bleeped.

"What do you mean we are out of bubblegum?" Poe asked in mock disappointment, while their transport jumped to hyperspace.

After the necessary preparations, the Millennium Falcon was ready to take off and take Finn, Rey, and Chewie to their adventure. Leia stood up, smiled and turned to leave.

"May the Force be with of you," Leia said, exiting the Falcon.

"Thank you General," Rey said. The ramp closed behind Leia and Chewie and Rey went to the cockpit to start the Falcon's engines. Their adventure had just begun.

A few minutes later, the Falcon jumped to hyperspace. According to Leia's Orders, it was time for Chewie to reveal his secret. The wookie approached Rey and told him the name of the Jedi Master who had survived Palpatine's Purge.

"Obi-Wan Kenobi?" Rey asked.


	12. Mos Eisley Cantina

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finn, Rey, and Chewie enter the Mos Eisley Cantina to meet a man Obi-Wan Kenobi had befriended years ago and who might know where the Artifact is. 
> 
> Unfortunately, the First Order is there as well...

"Obi-Wan Kenobi," Rey said, "the keeper of the Artifact secrets, the hermit of Tatooine."

"Tatooine. There is so much history in this place," Finn said.

“Yes, Finn. The birthplace of Darth Vader, the place where Luke Skywalker lived for nineteen years, and the place where Obi-Wan Kenobi exiled himself. And perhaps the place where the Artifact is.”

R2 bleeped next to Rey. It was a strange bleep that somehow sounded nostalgic and Rey could understand why. Almost thirty-five years ago the spaceship they were in had taken Chewie, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, C-3PO and R2-D2 away from the planet.

“It's been a long time for you too R2,” Rey said.

A tear fell from Chewie's eye.

“What is the matter Chewie?” Rey asked. But she immediately knew the answer. Out of the four people who had boarded the Falcon that day, Chewie was the last survivor. Obi-Wan had died trying to buy time for Luke, Han, Chewie, and Leia Organa to escape from the Death Star. Luke Skywalker had lost his life helping the Resistance escape from Crait. And Han Solo…

“Yes, they are gone Chewie,” Rey said softly. “But you are still here. And we are here with you and you won't lose us.” Chewie smiled and gave her a gentle pat on the shoulder.

It was darkness when the Millennium Falcon landed on the Tatooine spaceport. Actually, the term spaceport was a bit of a stretch. It was just a flat area partly covered with cement with a few tents and a single building made of tin and bricks in the color of the sand.

“Just like Jakku,” Rey said. “And the Millennium Falcon has been in both places.”

A few minutes later, Rey, Finn, and Chewie exited the spaceship while R2-D2 remained inside it to lock all entrances and keep an eye for intruders. (You can never be too careful in a place like that). As soon as all entrances were secure, Chewie looked at Finn and Rey and growled.

“Mos Eisley Cantina?” Finn asked. “I wonder what kind of place it is.”

Mos Eisley! The place where Han Solo had killed Greedo, shooting under the table – he had shot first of course – and Obi-Wan Kenobi had cut a bandit's arm using his lightsaber. And most important of all, the place where Luke Skywalker had met Chewie and Han for the first time and they had accompanied him in his hero's journey!

The three of them sat on a table overlooking the cantina entrance and Chewie ordered three beers. A small orchestra was playing a boring and repetitive tune but nobody paid any attention. The smugglers were busy making deals with shady merchants, the hookers were trying to find someone horny with money, and the rest if the customers were either gambling or spending their money on drinks. Chewie made a comment on that.

“You are right Chewie,” Rey replied. “Where law and order don't exist, places like this are born. There is a cantina like this in Jakku and I avoided it like the plague. The only women who enter such places are smugglers, whores, and gangster's girlfriends.”

“I don't see any difference between the last two,” Finn said.

“There isn't any,” Rey said.

A few minutes later, a droid waiter came to their table bringing the beers Chewie had ordered. The wookie placed some money on the droid's disk and the three of them spent the next few minutes in silence, slowly drinking their beers.

There was a man Chewie wanted to meet, the only person in Tatooine Obi-Wan Kenobi had befriended all those years. The man was not Force-sensitive but perhaps under the desperate circumstances Master Kenobi had trusted him enough to tell him about the Artifact.

On the other hand, more than three decades had passed. Had the man survived in such a lawless place for so many decades? Had the First Order with their massive resources located him and made him betray his secret either through coercion or through bribe? Chewie had no way to tell.

Suddenly, the door in the Cantina opened. Four men that looked like outlaws entered it. The trio looked at them carefully.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Rey whispered.

The four people stood still, ten meters away from the trio. The people inside the cantina glanced at them but they lost interest after a second. Only Chewie, Rey, and Finn remained interested. Something was wrong with them.

Discreetly, Finn checked his blaster, hidden in a holster under his shirt. Rey did the same with her blaster and her lightsaber. Chewie gently touched his bowcaster under the table. All three of them could neutralize any opposition at a moment's notice if things came to that. Nevertheless, they remembered Leia's warning: “The First Order has spies everywhere. Violence is the last resort. If you use your lightsaber Rey, they will know you are a Jedi and then your days are numbered.”

Rey took a sip from her beer. Meanwhile, the four people formed two groups of two, obviously trying to surround them. One of them – apparently their leader – made a gesture. All four of them started moving slowly towards the trio.

Who were these people? Were they criminals who wanted to take their money? Were they bullies who wanted to play tough? Or were they working for the First Order?

In any case, they presented a risk and there was only one way for Rey to neutralize them without resorting to violence. She looked at the leader of the group, focusing on him really, really hard. She noticed the expression on his face, his right arm slowly moving under his shirt to grab the holstered pistol hidden there ...

“You do not want to approach us,” she whispered. “You want to turn around and exit the cantina.”

The man looked at her, hesitation on his face. His hand stopped moving. He stopped walking and looked at the other three men, gesturing for them to turn around and leave. About a minute later, all four of them were out of the cantina.

Finn and Chewie looked at Rey, impressed. Finn gave her a gentle touch on the back.

“Jedi mind tricks,” she said. “Master Skywalker would be proud,” she said and took a sip from her beer.

A few tables away from the trio, two men were talking and drinking at a corner table. Both were average looking, were dressed in simple clothes, and there was nothing to betray any wealth or privilege. One of them appeared to be a merchant trying to illegally purchase contraband while the other looked like a smuggler who owned the right freighter for the job.

In reality, both of them were First Order officers, specialized in intelligence gathering. They had been in Tatooine for years pretending to be criminals who wanted to make money. During those years, and thanks to generous funding from General Octavius Conadi, the two of them had established a spy network on the planet.

Before the war, their primary mission had been to keep an eye for Luke Skywalker and inform their superiors in case he arrived on Tatooine. In addition, they were to use their network of contacts to smuggle valuable materials for the First Order.

Just a few days after the war started the priorities changed. Luke Skywalker lost his life, making the search for him meaningless. Moreover, the First Order soon occupied the planets with the materials they needed, so smuggling was no longer necessary. Last but not least, Supreme Leader Snoke died and Kylo Ren succeeded him.

The new Supreme Leader had new orders for them: learn everything you can about a mysterious Jedi device called the Artifact. In addition, they should have their eyes open for a young and good-looking brunette about twenty years old, named Rey.

When the four people they had recruited approached the man, the woman, and the wookie, something unexpected happened. Without any explanation, the leader of the group had stopped his approach and he had turned around and left, ordering his men to do the same.

That was highly suspicious. Had the wookie – who appeared to be very strong – intimidated them? Had his men changed their minds? Or had one of them used the Force?

“Are we going to report what we saw?” the youngest of the two officers – a lieutenant – asked.

The other officer – a captain – thought for a second. Had the incident happened a few months ago, he would have reported it without a second thought. But things had changed a lot during the recent past. Supreme Leader Snoke was dead and Hux and Ren had taken over, replacing many senior officers with their yes-men.

“She seems to be the girl and she seems to have used a Jedi Mind Trick. But we need more proof than that.”

“I agree Captain. With so many false alarms in other planets, they will scold us if we report something that doesn't exist.”

Both men looked at each other. There was something both of them wanted to say but none of them dared to do so. In the end, it was the lieutenant who broke the silence.

“By the way Captain, what do you think about General Conadi's death?” The captain looked at his subordinate and sighed. He knew everyone in the military intelligence was asking the same question.

“Officially, Conadi wanted to commit suicide using a thermal grenade. His son tried to stop him but he failed and both died in the explosion. Let's say I don't buy it.”

“Neither do I Captain. I think the rumors about the purges are real and Conadi was the next to get the chop. He either committed suicide to avoid capture and torture or Hux and Ren 'suicided' him.”

“So do I. Therefore, if we draw attention to us, we are dead.” The Captain gave the Lieutenant a knowing look.

“All right then. We don't say a word yet and we investigate very thoroughly.”

“That's right. Let's go outside and meet our people.” Both men stood up and left the cantina.

When Obi–Wan Kenobi first came to Tatooine with newborn Luke Skywalker in his hands, the only two people he talked to were Luke's uncle and aunt who became his adopted parents.

Soon however, Luke's relatives became distant from Kenobi. They didn't want to remember the war, the destruction, the fact Luke's father Anakin had become Darth Vader, and most of it they were afraid that a powerful Force user like Jedi Master Kenobi would influence young Luke the wrong way. After all, hadn't Kenobi been Anakin's mentor in the past?

Since Kenobi was a new face in town, the locals showed some interest for him. Rumors spread about his origin and about his motivations. Soon however, they lost interest. Kenobi talked to none, harmed none and made business with none so none had any reason to care about him. For the next nineteen years, Obi-Wan Kenobi became a hermit on Tatooine. Even Luke's uncle and aunt stopped talking to him after a few years.

The only person who ended up befriending Kenobi was Morric, a middle aged former soldier who had become a smuggler. An odd friendship started between them, a strong friendship that lasted for almost twenty years. Gradually, the Jedi Master opened up and told Morric the story of his life, his past as a Jedi, Anakin's betrayal and his vision for a new Galaxy.

A few days before the two droids – R2-D2 and C-3PO – landed on Tatooine, Obi-Wan had a nightmare. He saw a peaceful planet, full of innocent people getting vaporized. He understood something big was going to happen and went to visit his friend Morric.

“Many people will die,” the Jedi Master told him. “And I believe I will be one of them.” Indeed, a few days later the Death Star destroyed planet Alderaan, just like Obi-Wan had dreamed, causing millions of deaths.

“Obi-Wan,” Morric had said. “You were always a pessimist.”

“No. I am certain I won't make it. I feel I will have to go on a journey and I will never come back. So here is a secret I want you to keep, a secret that generations of Jedi before me have kept.” Obi-Wan cleared his throat and told Morric about the Artifact.

“This is very important,” Morric said when Obi-Wan had finished talking. “But I am not a Jedi myself. Who am I supposed to say that?”

The Jedi Master smiled. “Don't worry Morric. The time will come when a Jedi will visit you and you will know. Here,” he said and gave him a piece of paper. It was a crude sketch of a map with some coded instructions on it. “Give it to them when they come. They will understand.”

“Very well Obi-Wan. By the way, since you will go on a journey, you will need a good pilot.”

“Which one do you recommend Morric?” Kenobi asked.

“Try Han Solo.”

“So that was exactly what happened,” Morric said. Rey, Finn, and Chewie looked at him. He had entered the cantina just two minutes after the two First Order officers had left.

“So where is the map?” Rey asked.

“Careful,” Morric told her. “Did you notice these two people four tables to our left?”

“Just a passing glance,” Finn said, “What about them?”

“First Order Military Intelligence,” Morric replied. “They are good, really good. But I recognized them.“ Chewie nodded in agreement but Rey and Finn remained skeptical.

“I am eighty years old,” Morric said. “I have spent many of them here in Tatooine or places like this. This is a place without police, judges, law, or order. You have nobody to rely on but yourself and the moment you stop paying attention, you die.”

Chewie told Morric about the four people who had approached them and how Rey had convinced them to go away. Morric gave Rey an approving nod.

“They were either First Order or paid by these two down there,” Morric said. “Be very careful.” Finn and Rey nodded in agreement.

Morric discreetly scanned the area to see if there were others around. Satisfied he found none, he removed a worn piece of paper from one of the pockets of his pouch and placed it on the table for Rey to see it.

“As Master Kenobi told me,” Morric said, “only a Jedi would understand what he wrote.”

Rey picked the piece of paper up and examined it very carefully for a few minutes. She could recognize the symbols and she could almost feel an aura surrounding it. There so many things the Force could do if you learned how to use it.

“It is a place in the desert,” Rey said. “And also something else, something deadly.”

“What is it Rey?” Finn asked.

“A trap that only a true Jedi can pass it.”

The two First Order officers were outside the cantina. The four hired spies were standing in front of them.

“All right, what happened?” the Lieutenant asked the leader of the group.

“I wanted to talk to them … but I suddenly changed my mind. I don't know how that happened. I know it sounds silly ...”

The Captain looked at him. Was the man a coward or had the girl used a Jedi Mind Trick on him?

“You and you,” he said addressing two of the four men. “Get in the cantina, sit on a table and watch them. But don't approach them.” The two men immediately did as ordered.

“Have you found their means of transportation?” the captain asked.

“Yes, it is an old Corellian transport,” one of the men said. The Captain ordered them to show them.

The Captain and the Lieutenant exchanged a look. A Corellian transport? The legendary Millennium Falcon was a Corellian transport! And the wookie inside the cantina could be the legendary Chewbacca himself!

“OK,” the Captain said when he saw the Falcon with his own eyes. “You two remain here and watch for anyone approaching the spaceship. Find a place to hide and don't leave it unless I personally order you. When you find it, one of you stays to watch the spaceship and the other goes to buy food, water, coffee, and two sleeping bags. You observe in shifts, one always watching, the other sleeping or resting. If you see on of them approaching, use your radios to report to me at once. Understood?” Both men nodded and got to work.

“We have company,” Morric said recognizing the two men, sitting on a table and ordering beers. They were part of the group that had nearly attacked the trio just a few minutes ago.

“How do we get out of here without our friends there seeing us?” Rey asked.

“The bartender is a friend and will distract them when I give the signal. When he does that, leave from the back door. There is a vehicle waiting for you there for the next part of your journey.”

“Thanks a lot Morric,” Rey said. “We really appreciate your help.”

“It's the least I can do for an old friend,” Morric said. “Besides, everyone in the Galaxy knows what those bastards did to the Hosnian System. Not even the old Empire was that evil.”

“By the way Morric,” Finn asked. “How did you know when and how to contact us?”

“I didn't use the Force if that's what you ask. As I said, I always keep my eyes open. And besides, the Millennium Falcon is unique in the Galaxy. It would either bring my old friend Obi-Wan back or a new group of adventurers that would need some help along the way.”

Finn and Rey smiled. Chewie nodded in agreement. Yes, if you came down to it, it was just that: an adventure, a story parents would tell their children and people would write books or make movies about them.

“May the Force be with you,” Morric said and raised his glass. It was the signal for the bartender to interfere. The trio nodded, stood up and rushed to the back door before the two First Order agents noticed their absence.

It was the middle of the night and the atmosphere had cooled, the perfect time for someone to venture in the desert. Rey sat on the driver's seat of the small repursorlift vehicle Morric had provided them while Finn and Chewie kept their weapons ready to return fire to anyone who dared attack them.

Rey closed her eyes for a few seconds to remember the map. When she opened them, everything was clear in her head. She could see distant hills and mountains, desert valleys and canyons. The path they had to follow appeared in front of her eyes with clarity.

Rey pressed a button and the vehicle came to life. A few seconds later, the repursorlift was about two meters above the ground.

“OK gentlemen,” Rey said, “let's go.” The repursorlift accelerated towards the desert.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is an homage to Mos Eisley Cantina, one of my favorite places in the Star Wars Universe. 
> 
> And yes: Han shot first.


	13. In the Valley of the Jedi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey, Finn, and Chewie narrowly evade death in the desert. Afterwards, Rey has to pass Obi-Wan Kenobi's tests to obtain the first part of the Artifact.

"Such a lovely and beautiful night," Finn said. The clear night sky, the beautiful constellations hanging billions of kilometers above them, and the silence of the desert created a beautiful combination for his senses.

"I was a creature of the desert," Rey told Finn. "I used to love the vast spaces, the silence, the solitude." She sighed. "But I can see there are more important things than that."

"What is more important for you Rey?" Finn asked.

"For starters, having people like you and Chewie around me. Two, belonging to something bigger than yourself: the Resistance, the Jedi Order, the Galaxy. And more important of all, fighting for something meaningful. And what is more meaningful than fighting to restore peace and freedom in our Galaxy?"

Finn gently touched her shoulder. They had been through so much during the past months and had come to love each other. Rey was right. There were important things to fight for and Finn was proud for the opportunity to fight for them alongside her.

The repursorlift steadily moved towards their destination, a valley with a hidden cave, deep inside the desert. There seemed to be no obstacles in front of them and according to the map Morric had given them, their path would remain smooth for many miles ahead.

Despite the apparent calmness and quietness, Rey remained vigilant. That was why a catastrophe was averted.

No matter what the name implies, deserts are almost never deserted. There are always creatures living there, plants that survive with barely any water and animals that know how to hide from the scorching heat and how to find food there. In that particular desert, there were even sentient beings. They called themselves the Jawas.

The Jawas were strange beings. They combined ancient tribal traditions with advanced technology. The best such example were their homes that moved on tracks, combining the nomadic lifestyle of their ancestors with modern technology. Even the smallest Jawa tribe had at least one such vehicle as its home and its base of operations.

Jawas were extremely violent and deadly creatures that always shot first and asked questions later. If you could not outrun them, your only chance of survival was if they decided to keep you as a slave.

Rey more sensed than saw the incoming threat. In an instant, she violently maneuvered the vehicle to the right.

"Incoming!" she shouted while turning the vehicle. Finn and Chewie barely managed not to fall to the sand below.

"Hey, what ... ?" Finn asked. He didn't finish the question and he didn't need to. The light from the exhaust fumes of the incoming missile was all the answer he needed. It was closing the distance towards them at an alarming speed.

Three seconds ... two ... one ... and the missile barely missed them. Rey's sudden maneuver had been successful.

"Good job Rey!" Finn said, relieved.

After her evasive maneuver, Rey turned the repursorlift to the right to further distance herself from the enemy. As Finn could see, their enemies were formidable. They were firing against them using two heavy anti-aircraft guns plus a number of small caliber weapons.

"Grab something!" Rey shouted at Finn and Chewie. Both of them grabbed the vehicle's handrails just in time. Rey performed a sudden dive from five meters to fifty centimeters. A few seconds later, a burst of anti-aircraft fire passed barely two meters above their heads. Had Rey maintained their previous altitude, all three of them would be dead.

"Phew!" Finn whispered. He looked at the enemy. They kept firing against them with their anti-aircraft guns but the smaller caliber weapons were now silent because the distance was too far for them. Fortunately, even the high-caliber anti-aircraft guns were increasingly inaccurate.

Two minutes later, the two anti-aircraft guns stopped firing. Despite this, both Finn and Chewie maintained a vigilant watch for incoming missiles or approaching enemy flying vehicles. It was not until ten minutes later when all three of them blew a sigh of relief.

"I think we are safe now," Finn said.

"We are," Rey replied with certainty. Since Rey was a Jedi and the Force gave her powers none of them could comprehend, Finn and Chewie accepted her statement at face value.

"Who were those people?" Rey asked. Chewie spent a few minutes explaining.

"Jawas? Never heard of them," she commented. "There were no such creatures in Jakku. And eating people alive? I am so happy we evaded them."

After some more minutes, the vehicle was back in its original course. The Jawa attack had been an unplanned emergency but apart from some minutes of intense danger and some delay no permanent damage was done. They would still reach Master Kenobi's cave before sunrise.

The trio spent the next three hours in silence. Chewie took over driving while Finn kept scanning around for potential threats. Rey took a nap to gather strength for the tests Obi-Wan Kenobi had for her.

One more hour passed and the vehicle reached the valley. Since Chewie didn't know the precise location of the cave, he woke Rey up to let her pilot the repursorlift to its entrance. Rey did exactly that and a few minutes later they were inside a spacious but apparently abandoned area.

"The cave of Obi-Wan Kenobi," Rey said when the repursorlift touched the ground. All three of them looked at the walls, speechless. There were paintings on them, apparently made by the Jedi Master himself. The paintings included scenes of the past plus old Jedi sayings.

"Do or do not do. There is no try!” Finn read on the wall.

“Yoda,” Rey commented, referring to the famous saying of the legendary Jedi Master.

The carefully drawn painting of all was the one of a baton. The baton consisted of two parts: a black cylinder about thirty centimeters long and a light gray sphere on top of it.

Rey studied the painting very carefully. She immediately knew what the baton was.

"The Artifact," she whispered. "The famous Jedi Artifact."

"It doesn't seem impressive," Finn said.

"Better that way," Rey said. "You don't want to create something that stands out."

"You are right about that," Finn said. "But where is the real one?"

Rey was as puzzled as Finn. She could see no hints about its location on the ceiling or the walls. She checked the floor. There was a dark blue circle in the middle of it, about one meter in diameter.

Rey took a deep breath and looked at the circle. She didn't know why but an impulse compelled her to step on it. Perhaps the Force was nudging her in that direction.

"OK gentlemen. Step back and hide behind that rock," Rey said, pointing to a big rock next to the cave entrance. "It will be dangerous."

Finn and Chewie looked at each other, puzzlement on their faces. Nevertheless, they fully trusted Rey and hid behind the rock. Rey nodded and approached the circle, her lightsaber drawn and ready to be activated.

The moment Rey stepped on the circle, something mysterious happened. A dim bluish light appeared on the ceiling and a strange thought invaded her mind. She activated her lightsaber, ready for the danger the thought had warned her about.

A plasma blaster bolt appeared as from nowhere from her left. Rey immediately turned and deflected it with her lightsaber. While turning left, another bolt appeared from her back. Without turning and without watching, she deflected it as well.

Two bolts appeared from two different directions. In a swift motion, Rey deflected both with a single stroke from her lightsaber. One of the deflected bolts hit the rock where Finn and Chewie were hidden but the rock was solid and it didn't harm them.

After some time, the bolt attacks stopped and the bluish light gave its place to a warmer white. As if from nowhere, a white glowing figure appeared in front of her. It was the Force ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"Congratulations Rey," he said. "You have passed the first test."

"Master Kenobi?" Rey asked, somewhat disbelieving her own eyes.

"Yes, I am Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, Rey from Jakku," the Force ghost replied. "And I know why you and your two friends are here. Please, step outside to see you gentlemen."

Finn and Chewie appeared from behind the rock. They looked at Rey, then Master Kenobi.

"Hello Chewie! It's been a long time!" Obi-Wan said in a warm smile. Chewie returned the smile.

"And you must be Finn, a man of great moral courage." All three of them declined their heads in respect.

"It is a honor to see you here Master Kenobi," Finn said. “Rey has told me a lot about you."

"Thank you Finn.” A brief silence followed before the Jedi Master spoke again. “The next part of the test is in another area," Obi-Wan said in a somewhat apologetic tone. "You will have to wait for your friend here."

"OK Rey, time for the second test. Touch the drawing of the Artifact," Obi-Wan said. Rey did exactly that. Suddenly, the wall behind the drawing moved backwards and then to the right, revealing a big dark corridor. Rey looked at Obi-Wan puzzled.

"Don't be afraid Rey," Kenobi said. Rey took a deep breath and started walking towards the corridor.

"The Artifact is in a room at the other end of the corridor ..." he said, the moment Rey was in the middle of the corridor.

"... if you pass the test." The wall moved back to its original place, blocking Rey's exit.

The next minute, Rey and Obi-Wan's Force ghost were inside a small, square room. There was a dim light coming from the ceiling and except from a small square pedestal in its center, the room was empty. Observing the pedestal, Rey noticed there was a small hemispherical hole on it that perfectly matched the size of the Artifact's head.

"Normally, the pedestal holds part of the Artifact," the Jedi Master said. "But not today. Today, you will have to earn it."

"How can I do that Master Kenobi? What is the test?"

"The previous test was a physical one. It measured your strength and your dexterity in applying the Force in combat. This one is one of connectedness. It measures how strong your mental and emotional connection to the Force is."

"What do I have to do?" Rey asked.

"Nothing spectacular. You just sit on the floor with your eyes closed. If your connection is strong, the Force will know. It not, the Force will know again."

As per the Jedi Master's instructions, Rey sat on the floor and closed her eyes, took deep breaths and reached a high level of concentration.

"The test is as follows: you will see a series of visions. The strength of your connection to the Force will determine their content and their clarity.”

The first vision she saw was from Tatooine. It showed a binary sunset from the point of view of two people: a young man barely twenty, and a much older man who appeared to be about sixty. Both men were facing the sunset and were showing their backs to her but Rey immediately recognized them. The old man was Obi-Wan Kenobi and the young man Luke Skywalker.

The second vision was from the point of view of Master Kenobi himself. He was holding a lightsaber, trying to defend himself against Darth Vader.

"You cannot win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine,” Obi-Wan had said moments before becoming one with the Force.

The third vision was from another man and another fight. Once more, the opponent was Darth Vader. But this time the Jedi was Luke Skywalker. Rey could observe the Sith Lord cornering young Luke and cutting his right arm. It was the night Luke Skywalker learned the biggest secret of his life.

"No! I am your father!" Darth Vader had told him.

The visions continued from various other places and various other people, all of them Jedi in various parts of the Galaxy. Rey also observed Obi-Wan again and another Jedi Master named Yoda.

The final vision was from Luke Skywalker. Rey could see a binary sunset, only this time the place was not Tatooine but Ahch-To, the planet the Jedi Master had isolated himself for years.

"I am one with the Force ... and the Force is with me," Luke Skywalker said. These had been his final words before his body evaporated and his spirit became one with the Force. Rey's vision became blurred and was replaced with light.

"Open your eyes now Rey," Obi-Wan said. Rey did as told. The pedestal in front of her had disappeared.

"You have proven your connectedness to the Force Rey. You have seen the world through the eyes of other Jedi, myself and Luke Skywalker included. Let us see whether you passed the test now."

The pedestal slowly rose from the ground. Rey observed it, barely holding her breath. It rose until it reached her height. And to her delight, the sphere, the first part of the Artifact, was there!

"Take it Rey and use it wisely," Obi-Wan Kenobi said.

A few minutes later, Rey was back in the main room where Chewie and Finn were waiting. She was holding the first part of the Artifact.

"You did it," Finn said and hugged her.

It was scorching hot outside and the three of them had barely slept during the previous night. Chewie went to their vehicle and came back with sleeping bags, some food to eat, and some water to drink. Twenty minutes later, they were fast asleep.

A few hours later, the three of them woke up. The Force ghost of Obi – Wan Kenobi was there. For the next hours till darkness came, the three of them and Obi-Wan spent their time talking. Initially, Rey asked the Jedi Master questions about the Artifact. Kenobi answered them all. Afterwards, the discussion shifted to more personal matters. Obi-Wan had a special interest for Finn.

"I already knew Chewie. Rey is connected with the Force. You are the one I knew the least Finn," the Jedi Master said. "Defecting the First Order was a very brave thing for you to do."

"How did you know that Master Kenobi?" Finn asked, a bit surprised.

"Well," he said with a smile, "Force ghosts are not restrained by distance. I was in Jakku when you disobeyed Kylo Ren's order to murder innocent men and women. You were the only one who did it. And that gave me a special interest in you."

"Did you use the Force to convince me to free Poe Dameron?" Finn asked.

"Force ghosts are not that powerful," the Jedi Master replied. "And besides, I didn't have to. You don't need the Force to do the right thing Finn. What you really need is the moral conviction to tell right from wrong and the moral courage to do something about it."

It was getting dark outside. The trio packed their things and got ready to leave. They looked at the Force ghost of Jedi Master Kenobi for a final time.

"Do you know where the next part of the Artifact is?" Obi-Wan asked Rey.

"Yes,” Rey said, “I combined your knowledge with the one Master Skywalker provided me and the knowledge the ancient Jedi texts contained.”

"So where is it?” Finn asked.

"In Coruscant," Rey replied without hesitation. "In the ruins of the old Jedi Temple."

"Be careful," Obi-Wan warned. "Coruscant is probably in a state of anarchy now. And the Jedi temple ... let's say it was a tragedy what happened there. It is not a place for the faint of heart."

Rey remembered Luke Skywalker telling her about Palpatine, about the notorious Order 66 that caused the deaths of thousands of Jedi, and about the destruction of the Jedi Temple by Darth Vader that caused the death of thousands, many of them children. She nodded. It would be much harder than Tatooine.

Night had fallen outside the cave. The trio picked their things up and headed for their vehicle. They turned to face Obi-Wan Kenobi for a final time.

"Goodbye Master Kenobi," Rey said.

"Goodbye Rey, Finn, Chewie," the Jedi Master replied. "And ... may the Force be with you."


	14. Infiltrating the enemy flagship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe Dameron enters Supremacy and tries to reach Holdo's cell. He needs both to free her and use her help to sabotage the enemy flagship.

A few hours later, Poe's transport reached the Supremacy battle group. Dozens of starfighter squadrons patrolled the surrounding area, adding an extra layer of defense to an already impressive defensive ring consisting of ten capital ships. All of them were heavily reinforced with extra armor, powerful energy shields, and heavy turbolasers.

Supremacy was in the center of the group. It was sixty kilometers long, thirty kilometers wide, with extensive hangar bays big enough to accommodate even capital ships, with extensive manufacturing and repair facilities and more than two million crewmembers. Supremacy was more than a capital ship: it was a mothership, a flagship, the mobile capital of the First Order, and one of the most powerful ships ever created. And somewhere inside it, Amilyn Holdo was waiting for someone to rescue her.

Despite its enormous size, Poe knew the enemy flagship had its weak points. And his mission was to exploit them.

Two minutes later, two enemy TIE fighters were detached from a patrolling squadron and approached his transport. Poe was ready for them.

“This is the Supremacy outer defense group,” a voice said on the radio. “Identify yourself.” Poe gave one of Conadi's stolen codes. Hopefully, they were still in use. BB-8 made a silent bleep.

“I also hope the codes work buddy,” Poe whispered. “If they don't...” Thirty agonizing seconds passed until the reply came.

“Very well,” the same voice said. “We shall escort you to the flagship.” One of the two fighters took position to the right of him and the other one to his left.

“So far, so good buddy,” Poe whispered to BB-8.

A few minutes later, Poe's transport landed inside a Supremacy hangar, specifically used small incoming and outgoing transports. The security measures were very severe: scores of armed stormtroopers were around the place and fully manned gun turrets overlooked the landing area.

Dameron had no chance fighting against them. The only weapon he carried was his wristwatch and it only carried two tranquilizer darts. Fortunately, his plan of infiltration was based on 'friendliness' and not violence.

“OK buddy, showtime,” Admiral Dameron said and opened the transport door. With calm and confident moves, he exited his spaceship holding his briefcase and approached a specific officer, the same one Conadi had used to return to Supremacy undetected after his mission in Cloud City.

“Good evening Captain,” Poe told the officer.

“Good evening Commander...” the captain said recognizing the rank insignia in Poe's uniform.

“Bond. James Bond,” Dameron replied.

“What is the purpose of your presence here Commander Bond?” Poe gave the same bullshit explanation he had given the Major in the occupied planet. Just like the Major, the Captain remained skeptical.

“As you can see, the Major has approved of my visit here,“ Poe said, referring to his previous meeting.

Dameron reached a pocket in his uniform and produced an envelope. The Captain's eyes widened, a certain sign he was interested.

“This is a postcard from the Major,” Poe said offering the envelope to the Captain. There was indeed a postcard inside the envelope … and a number of banknotes. Seeing this, the Captain smiled.

“The Major is such a good friend Commander. I don't want to waste your time. Please proceed to your briefing.”

Poe knew that entering the prison with his briefcase was out of the question. The moment the prison guards opened to search it, they would find the bombs and Poe's plan would end along with his life. Fortunately, he had planned for that.

“Captain, I would like to ask for a small favor.”

“What is it Commander?”

“Between you and me there is another reason I am in Supremacy. There is a certain… lady I'd like to meet before the briefing starts. So could you keep my droid and my briefcase locked somewhere until I return?”

Since the Captain had received his bribe he had no reason to unfriendly. He gave Dameron a big and knowing smile.

“But of course Commander. Let me know when you need them.”

“Thanks Captain. The files in my briefcase are of a classified nature. For safety reasons, I will return with an armed stormtrooper to retrieve them.”

“Of course Commander.” Poe saluted the Captain and left for the prison area.

"Commander Bond to see prisoner in cell JB-007," Poe told the sentries guarding the prison entrance.

"I am afraid the JB section is off-limits sir," one of the heavily armed guards said. "Only the Supreme Leader Ren or Supreme Commander Hux can enter it. For the rest, written permission is required either from the Supreme Leader or the Supreme Commander."

Poe Dameron knew it was not going to be easy. After all, you don't just enter a heavily guarded place and expect the guards to open cell doors for you like that. Fortunately, he was man with a plan.

"Understood," he said. "I have permission but it is for the warden's eyes only. Inform him about my presence."

One of the guards did so and a few minutes later, the warden came. He gave Poe a curious look.

"Who are you Commander?" the warden asked in an unfriendly tone.

"The name is Bond, James Bond," he replied, once more using his favorite catchphrase.

"What do you want Commander Bond?"

"Follow me," Dameron said. Despite some hesitation, the warden followed Poe out of the guards' earshot.

"I am from military intelligence," Poe lied. "I represent some concerned parties within the First Order who would like to interrogate the prisoner in cell JB-007."

"This can only happen with permission from either the Supreme Commander or the Supreme Leader."

"Let's say the parties I represent are not exactly affiliated with either one of them," Dameron said.

"Then perhaps, I should inform Supreme Commander Hux," the warden said. He gestured to two of the guards who slowly started approaching them.

"And tell him what?" Poe asked, matter of factly. "That you embezzled money from the Starkiller Base construction project?"

The warden hesitated. He gestured for the guards to stop moving.

"Who the hell are you Bond?"

"That's irrelevant. What should concern you is that I have evidence," Poe said while presenting some of them in his datapad, "and that if you don't let me talk to the prisoner, Supreme Commander Hux will find out about you."

The warden gave a resigned look. Phasma had used the same tactic to blackmail him.

"How do I know you won't kill the prisoner?" the warden asked.

"If I do that I am a dead man and you know it," Poe said maintaining his bluff. "Why do you think I am here for? Legitimate reasons? Do you think the 'concerned parties' are some sort of ideologues? You've heard about the rumors, haven't you?"

The warden nodded in understandment. There were rumors about a purge of senior First Order officers. "You are just another greedy son of a bitch like me."

"That's right. I am going to just spend some time with the prisoner and ask some questions."

"And I suppose you will 'forget' to sign when you enter and the cameras will somehow 'malfunction' while you walk the corridor towards the cell," the warden said, remembering the exact same arrangement with Phasma and Major Julius Conadi. Both had used the same blackmail tactic to gain access to cell JB-007.

"We have a perfect understandment warden," Poe said with a smile. "Officially, you never saw me.”

The warden remained expressionless and started walking towards the prison cells. Dameron followed him. A few minutes later, they were close to cell JB-007. Two stormtroopers approached and stood next to the cell door. Poe had anticipated that move because Conadi had mentioned in his data files that the same thing had happened to him. Fortunately, he had incorporated that in his plan.

"Here is the cell," the warden said. "It has no hidden cameras or microphones in it, so nobody will know you are here. Let me know when the interrogation is over," the warden said and left.

"Very well," Poe replied. He waited two minutes for the warden to be away and gestured for the guards to open the door.

"You come with me," Dameron ordered one of the guards the moment the door opened. Despite some hesitation the stormtrooper complied followed Poe inside the cell, while the other trooper closed and locked the door.

The cell door opened and a man wearing a First Order uniform stepped inside, escorted by one stormtrooper. Amilyn raised his eyes to look at his face ... and her mouth opened in surprise. It could not be!

The man looked at Amilyn and smiled. The next moment, he raised his left arm and made a small move with his wrist, causing a dart to be fired from his watch and hit the stormtrooper on the neck at a vulnerable part of his armor.

The stormtrooper tried to turn but he never made it. He tried to grab his pistol but the tranquilizer in the dart was very strong and he fell to the ground without making a sound.

"Poe!" she said and stood up as if there were springs on her feet. In a moment she forgot her boredom, her tiredness and the horrors of her capture.

"Poe! You are alive!" she said hugging and kissing him. Poe had never seen her happier. He kissed her back and it took them more than fifteen minutes to stop kissing.

"You took so many risks for me," Amilyn said. "You are my hero!" she said and gave him a big kiss on the lips.

"You did the same for me in Jakku, remember?" Amilyn gave him a smile.

"And I would do it again any time," she said and hugged him again.

A few minutes passed like that. Poe looked at the unconscious guard. It was time to get to business.

"OK Amilyn," Poe said, still looking at the guard. "Escape time." Amilyn nodded and started removing the unconscious stormtrooper's armor and helmet. Poe helped her. While they did that, Amilyn explained Poe what had happened during her captivity.

According to Amilyn, someone strong in the Force had manipulated her mind to make her ram cruiser Raddus to a specific part of Supremacy. The obvious suspect was Kylo Ren who ended up becoming Supreme Leader himself.

After she escaped Raddus, Amilyn was captured and imprisoned. Hux and Ren kept her alive to torture her. They wanted her 'confessions' to frame officers they wanted to remove from the First Order ranks.

"They were afraid someone would do to them what they did to Snoke," Poe said.

Fortunately, after a few days the visits by Hux and Ren stopped. They probably were too busy to care about her anymore. But Phasma came to visit her once.

"We were right Poe," Amilyn said. "Phasma was going to lower the Starkiller shields herself anyway. She has a degree of conscience. Unfortunately, not enough to risk her life freeing me. I tried to convince her to switch sides but it didn't work."

After Phasma's visit, the only other person who came to her cell had been an officer with the rank of Major. But he only stayed in her cell for a few seconds to take a photograph of her.

"I met the man a few days ago," Poe said. "He wanted to defect but the First Order got him.”

It was Poe's turn to inform Amilyn about the war and the Resistance. Poe told her about their escape in Crait, Luke Skywalker's heroic sacrifice there, the ramming attacks they made, his promotion to Admiral and finally about her cousin Q.

"I can't wait to meet my cousin again," she said. "He is like a brother to me."

A few minutes later, Amilyn finished wearing the unconscious trooper's armor and checked the man's pistol. Satisfied it was loaded, she holstered it and put the trooper's helmet on, fully covering her head. Her disguise was now complete.

“Ready Admiral?” Admiral Dameron asked.

“Ready Admiral,” Vice Admiral Holdo replied with a smile.

“By the way, I am here with an assumed name,” Poe said with a smile.

“Let me guess. The name is Bond. James Bond.” Amilyn was delighted. She was a huge 007 fan herself.

“I couldn't resist Mrs. Trench,” Poe said with a smile. Sylvia Trench was the first Bond girl and Poe frequently called Amilyn like that.

“So what is the plan Mr. Bond?”

“Escaping, infiltrating an enemy installation, sabotaging it, and getting out of here.” He went on for a few minutes outlying the plan.

“Just like a Bond film,” she said, smiling. “How could I ever say no?”

Poe pressed a button next to the cell door and the guard standing watch outside opened it. Poe Dameron and Amilyn Holdo exited the cell and waited for the cell door to close.

“The warden has ordered your friend here to escort me to the exit,” Poe told the guard, gesturing to the disguised Amilyn. “He will be back in a few minutes.” The guard had no way to know that but he had no desire to argue with a superior officer, so he said nothing. With slow and confident steps, Amilyn and Poe started walking towards the exit.

“For security reasons, your friend over here will escort me to the bridge,” Poe told the troopers, guarding the prison entrance. “I have important information for the top brass.”

Poe's words made the guards a bit suspicious. But they remembered how easily he had convinced their own boss to let him enter the prison. Either he had Hux's approval or he had other powerful cards to play. In any case, they chose not to mess with him.

Poe and Amilyn kept walking at a slow and confident pace – you don't want to seem panicked around so many enemies – until they reached the hangar. With Amilyn escorting him, Poe approached the Captain he had bribed and asked him to retrieve his droid and his briefcase.

“Here we go Commander,” the Captain said, offering Poe the briefcase. BB-8 – still painted black – silently rolled towards his boss.

“Thank you for your cooperation Captain,” Poe said. “I won't forget you.” Once more the meaning was double: I am grateful but I will also tell them about you if you tell them about me. The Captain gave a knowing nod and left.

“Hello BB-8,” Amilyn told the droid, when they were out of earshot and her female voice could not be heard. The droid gave her an annoyed bleep.

“He is still annoyed because Rose painted him black,” Poe explained. Amilyn laughed under her helmet.

“Don't worry BB-8,” Amilyn said. “Poe and I will restore you to your original colors when we are out of here.” BB-8 gave her a dubious bleep.

“OK everyone,” Poe said. “We have a train to catch.”

Since Supremacy was such a huge spaceship - sixty kilometers long and thirty kilometers wide - people had to cover vast distances to perform their daily duties. To solve that problem, the spaceship builders had created a dedicated tube train system. There was a big terminal roughly in the center of the spaceship and two main lines, one from port to starboard, and one from bow to stern that covered most main areas of Supremacy.

BB-8 bleeped, warning the two Resistance officers. “OK, a station is nearby,” Poe said. Ten minutes later, the two Resistance officers were in front of the station and so were hundreds of stormtroopers and other First Order personnel.

Two minutes later, the train arrived and Poe, Amilyn and BB-8 entered it. Hopefully, none of the one hundred stormtroopers in the wagon recognized him. Poe took a casual look around him, looked at Holdo, and checked his datapad as if nothing was wrong. Amilyn gave him a slight nod.

The time seemed to pass very slow. They were seven stations away from their destination. Poe gently tapped his briefcase. If only the stormtroopers knew what was inside it ...

At last, they reached their destination. With calm and calculated moves, the two Resistance officers and their droid exited the train. The hyperspace drive room was nearby.

There was something wrong there, the warden thought. A few weeks ago, it had been Phasma who had blackmailed him for access to cell JB-007. So had Major Julius Conadi a few days ago. And today, Commander Bond had asked the same thing. What was going on there?

With growing suspicion, the warden pressed some buttons on the keyboard in front of him. Immediately, the screen in front of him faded to black. Two seconds later, it showed a live feed from the cameras in the corridor where Holdo's cell was. The warden took a good look and …

“Hey, where is the second guard?” he asked himself. Using his datapad, he contacted the one guard left.

“Yes, sir,” the guard said. “The Commander asked the other guard to enter the cell with him. A few minutes later both exited the cell and the Commander said ...” The guard told the warden exactly what Poe had said.

“How long ago did the Commander tell you that?”

“It was a few minutes ago. I was going to report it when you contacted me sir and ...”

“I am sure you would,” the warden replied. He was certain the guard was lying but he had other priorities now. Using his datapad, the warden gave the order for three armed guards to wait outside his office. When they came, he exited his office and they rushed to cell JB-007.

“Open the door,” the warden ordered the guard posted there. When the door opened, two of the stormtroopers entered the cell, weapons ready to fire. The warden followed them.

The room was empty except for the bed. Someone appeared to be sleeping there with a blanket covering the whole person's body. With growing concern, the warden approached the bed, removed the blanket and …

… he saw the stormtrooper laying unconscious there. And the worst part? He was not wearing his armor.

“Dammit,” he said in gritted teeth.

“A what warden? An escape?” Phasma asked.

“Yes, Captain,” the warden said, embarrassed. He didn't want to contact her but since she was head of security for Supremacy, he had no option. Phasma listened while the warden described how 'Commander Bond' had entered the cell and freed Vice Admiral Holdo.

“I have him on camera,” the warden said. “I will send you a photo of the man when one is ready. And one more think ...”

Phasma knew what he wanted. He wanted her to help him avoid a severe punishment for letting a prisoner escape. She thought it for a second. The man was desperate and if she didn't help him, he would retaliate saying she had made an unauthorized visit to Holdo. The moment the warden said that, Hux would investigate and he would ask her why. Soon, Hux would find out about her lowering the shields in Starkiller Base and within days she would face the firing squad.

“Don't worry, I will speak in your defense,” Phasma said. “But don't expect miracles.”

Dozens of kilometers away BB-8, Poe, and Amilyn disembarked from the tube train. The hyperspace driver area was at the end of the corridor.

“Since the enemy has a … slight numerical superiority here,” Poe said, “we are going to use a distraction.”

Using BB-8 hacking abilities, Poe unlocked the door of a small warehouse. Upon entering, Amilyn closed the door and Poe opened his briefcase to remove one of the bombs stored in it.

“OK buddy,” Poe told BB-8. “Ready?” The droid gave a hesitant bleep.

“I know it is dangerous but there is no other way,” he said.

The next minute Poe set the bomb timer to fifteen minutes and placed the bomb inside BB-8's storage case. Meanwhile, Amilyn stepped on a chair and opened the grille from the air vent on top of them.

“Do you have the air vent schematics stored in your memory?” Poe asked. BB-8 gave a confirmatory bleep.

“Good. You know where to drop the bomb and how far you need to be. Good luck buddy,” Poe said and gave BB-8 to Amilyn who placed him inside the air vent and closed the grille.

“I really hope the distraction works,” Amilyn said.

“Don't worry my love,” Poe said. “You know I am a really big troublemaker.”

At the main terminal, Phasma inspected her elite platoon of stormtroopers. All thirty of them were heavily armed and ready to go anywhere on Supremacy at a moment's notice. But first they needed to locate the Holdo and the infiltrator.

The next minute, a message from the warden containing the infiltrator's photo arrived in Phasma's datapad. Phasma immediately recognized the man.

“Why would Poe Dameron, the most wanted man in the Galaxy, risk so much entering Supremacy?” she asked herself.


	15. Hyperspace drive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe and Amilyn are trying to sabotage the Supremacy hyperspace drive. 
> 
> Meanwhile, Phasma and her platoon try to reach the area in time to stop them.

Inside the air vent network, BB-8 had to move very carefully. The place was like a maze and although he could use sources of light and sound inside the vents as points of reference, he still had to be careful not to be lost.

In addition, there were motion sensors inside the vents to prevent infiltration. The only way for BB-8 to pass undetected was by hacking them. The sensors would still appear to be in order but they would not transmit any motion data, thus allowing the droid to continue with his mission without sounding the alarm.

Ten minutes passed and BB-8 approached his objective, a fifty meter long air vent corridor. When the droid reached the middle of the corridor, he dropped the bomb and kept moving towards a column that would protect him from the blast. 

“Two minutes,” Poe said looking at his watch, “either to kick ass or chew bubblegum.” 

“We don't have bubblegum,” Amilyn said with a smile.

“OK, then. Let's kick ass.” With calmness and confidence, the two Resistance heroes exited the warehouses and approached one of the four hyperdrive room entrances. 

There were dozens of people in the hyperdrive area. Most of them were technicians and the rest were stormtroopers armed with pistols and rifles as security personnel. In additon, some of the technicians were armed with pistols. That was both a blessing and a curse: a curse because they would have to fight them and a blessing because Poe planned to neutralize one of the stormtroopers and steal his pistol and his rifle.

Thirty seconds until the explosion. Poe and Amilyn reached one of the entrances. The sentries looked at them, ready to challenge them. Poe looked at his watch. Ten seconds.

Suddenly, a huge explosion was heard from inside the hyperdrive room. Two seconds later, an alarm sounded. Poe and Amilyn looked at each other: BB-8 had made it. Soon, the people inside the room started evacuating it. Poe looked at Amilyn and nodded. She nodded back. While the enemies were too busy exiting the room to notice them, she and Poe took advantage of the confusion to enter.

“Hey, you,” Poe told a stormtrooper exiting the room. “Follow me.” The stormtrooper hesitated for half a second but did as ordered. Poe looked around him. The room was empty now, except from him, Amilyn, and the stormtrooper. Wasting no time, Poe used his wristwatch to fire a dart on him, rendering him unconscious. The moment his body touched the ground, Amilyn picked his rifle up and Poe did the same with his pistol. 

A few seconds later, the doors of the four entrances closed. That was standard operating procedure during fire and explosion alarms to prevent any fires from spreading to other parts of Supremacy. 

Poe examined the ceiling. There was a big hole on it in the place where BB-8's bomb had exploded. But where was BB-8?

“I think BB-8 is there,” Amilyn said pointing to a sound coming from a vertical air vent next to her. She reached the vent, opened the grille and the droid jumped outside.

“Great job BB-8,” Amilyn said, when the droid exited the vent.

"OK, let's get to work", Poe said. BB-8 went to one of the entrances, to hack its door opening mechanism. Poe opened his briefcase and gave Amilyn some of the bombs in it. 

The plan was as follows: as long as the enemies were still outside, Amilyn would help Poe plant explosives. The moment the enemies returned, she would take a defensive position and open fire, keeping them pinned down while Dameron would continue planting explosives. BB-8 would assist Poe hacking equipment and jamming whatever he could to further damage the enemy. 

Using Poe's datapad, they reached their first objective. Poe took a specialized mechanical screwdriver – there were several laying around – and unscrewed the four screws of a panel. The moment he removed the panel, Amilyn activated one of the bombs and put it behind some wires. When she finished, Poe put the panel back in place and screwed it.

They repeated the process in a second panel and a pipe carrying fuel that powered the main hyperspace drive engine. To make it harder for the enemy to repair the pipe, Amilyn and Poe placed bombs in three different places. “It will not only leak fuel,” he explained her, “it will also catch fire.” The fire could also melt some electricity wires passing next to it, causing short-circuits thus worsening the damage. 

According to Dameron's schemantics, two of the four doors could be electronically jammed to remain close. BB-8 had already done that. The third one had a manual mechanical lock from the inside and Poe and Amilyn activated it. The last door was only used during emergencies and was the only one the enemy could open from the outside. 

“OK Amilyn,” he said, pointing at the door. “This is the only door we can't keep closed from the inside. They will try to come through there. I need you to keep them pinned down for as long as possible.”

“Alright Poe,” she said, a determined look on her face. Poe smiled, gave her a soft kiss on her lips and went to his next objective. Amilyn put the helmet back on her head, found a covering position behind a big column and waited.

Followed by BB-8, Poe entered a small air-conditioned room where a computer server and some terminals were. It was the nerve center of the hyperdrive. It was also the place where a very subtle but important sabotage was to take place.

“OK buddy,” Poe said while planting bombs in the room. “Do your magic.” The droid bleeped and started hacking the computer system. 

Hidden behind the column, Amilyn checked her weapon, and observed the door slowly opening. Her hands trembled and she took a deep breath to calm herself. A First Order lieutenant slowly walked inside the room.

A hundred meters away, Poe Dameron listened to the sound of the door opening. He stopped for a second, his thoughts on Amilyn. BB-8 bleeped beside him.   
“I know,” he said, “we have a mission.” He continued to his next objective. There were five more to go. Meanwhile, Amilyn looked at the enemy lieutenant and took careful aim.

“It's alright people,” the lieutenant said. “There is no fire. We are safe.” 

Amilyn Holdo pulled the trigger.

Back in the tube terminal, Phasma inspected her troops. They were all heavily equipped and two of them carried rocket launchers. Their rockets were powerful enough to destroy an armored vehicle or penetrate a heavily armored door in one or two shots. 

A message flashed on her datapad about an explosion and a fire alarm inside the hyperdrive room. There were also reports of shots being fired. There was no intel about Dameron or Holdo in the message but Phasma was certain it had been their work. Phasma and her platoon had to go to the hyperdrive as soon as possible. There was only one way to do that. 

“Evacuate the train. Now! It is an emergency.” The troops not belonging to her platoon were surprized but nevertheless complied with the order. Ten seconds later, the train started. Only Phasma's platoon was inside it.

“Your destination is the hyperspace drive station,” Phasma told the train driver.   
“Don't stop anywhere else. Go as fast as the train can.” 

The lieutenant fell to the ground, seriously wounded. The stormtrooper following him was too shocked to duck for cover and that caused his injury when Holdo fired for a second time.

After the second shot, everyone ducked for cover and the two injured enemies slowly crawled to safety. Amilyn started firing short bursts at random intervals to keep them pinned down. She counted on the fact most of them were unarmed technicians or inexperienced stormtroopers and not hardened veterans who could easily fight back. In fact, it took the stormtroopers about one minute to return fire and even then their shots were too inaccurate to even approach her.

At the same time, Dameron placed two bombs behind a small reactor. “OK buddy,” he told his droid. “Four more to go” 

His next target was a room containing more hyperdrive devices. He blasted the door with a shot from his pistol, opened his briefcase, removed three bombs, activated them and placed them behind the devices. 

Upon exiting the room, Poe listened to the shots fired. “I love this woman,” he said with a smile. BB-8 bleeped next to him.

“I know buddy, I know,” Poe said and headed to his next objective, a series of fuel pumps. 

As soon as Phasma and her troops disembarked from the train she ordered ten of them, including one of the two rocket launcher troopers, to head for door A. She and the rest of the troops went for door B. 

“Be ready to fire when I give the signal,” Phasma told the trooper carrying the rocket launcher. The trooper nodded and loaded his weapon.

One minute later, the sergeant leading the troops for door A reported they were in position. Phasma's platoon would make a simultaneous assault from door B to hit the enemy from two fronts.

“In exactly twenty seconds, fire a rocket to the door,” Phasma ordered the sergeant.

“OK buddy,” Poe said after placing two bombs in the backup server room, “that was our final target.” It was time for them to get out of there. Poe drew his pistol and approached the place Amilyn was hidden. 

“I am covering you!” Poe said while firing about a meter above Holdo's head. “Retreat!”

“OK!” she shouted back and started retreating, careful not to be in Dameron's field of fire. 

“Three … two … one … Fire!” Phasma ordered. Both troopers fired at exactly the same time, blasting both doors.

The moment Amilyn reached Poe, two loud explosions were heard. Both officers felt a vibration under their feet.

“They blew the doors up,” Poe said. “Cover your ears and take cover, I will open a hole in the wall.” Fully trusting Dameron, Holdo did what he asked.

One of the first bombs Dameron had placed was next to a nearby wall and he could activate it with his datapad. Poe pressed a button on it causing the bomb to blow up. When the smoke and dust cleared, a big hole was visible. 

“Get in the pipe and follow it. I'll cover you.”

“Where does it lead to?”

“A trash compactor.”

“A what??” Amilyn suddenly remembered Leia, her escape from the Death Star and her near death when she, Han Solo and Luke Skywalker fell to a trash compactor and got cold feet. 

“I have breached the door!” the stormtrooper with the launcher informed Phasma.

“Good.” She looked at of her troops. “Throw grenades,” she ordered. Her troops, trained to throw grenades at long distances immmediately complied. 

“Don't worry,” Poe said. “The compactor is empty.” 

“In the Death Star … ,” Amilyn tried to say when a grenade exploded close to them. 

“Oh forget it,” she said upon hearing the explosion and entered the pipe. BB-8 followed her after a few seconds.

“I really hope it is empty,” Poe told himself. A grenade landed next to him.

“Dammit!” he said and rushed to the pipe. Half a second later the grenade exploded.


	16. Escape from Supremacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe and Amilyn are inside the trash compactor trying to escape. 
> 
> Meanwhile, Phasma and her platoon try to stop them before they exit the compactor, steal a spaceship and get out of there.

Amilyn vividly remembered Leia's description about her escape from the Death Star. To hide from the enemy she, Luke Skywalker, and Han Solo were forced to hide in a trash compactor. Unfortunately, the compactor had been full of organic waste and it was like a smelly swamp. The worst part though had been a big snake-like creature in it that nearly killed them. Hopefully, this compactor would be different.

After almost one minute of falling through the pipe, Amilyn Holdo fell inside the compactor and ended up on top of a pile of big, black plastic bags. That was fortunate because the bags cushioned her fall and prevented any injuries.

As soon as she stood up, the Vice Admiral unshouldered her rifle and checked the plastic bags. They all contained paper and non-organic material such as discarded plastic. Even better, the compactor was dry and there were no strange creatures hidden in it. Satisfied she had found no monsters, Amilyn removed her helmet, took a deep breath and smelled the surrounding air. Fortunately, there were no strange smells.

A few seconds later, BB-8 fell on the same pile of plastic bags. With remarkable agility, the droid bounced to the floor and went to the compactor door to hack its electronic lock. Amilyn looked at him, impressed.

Poe Dameron was the last to come. He too fell on top of the pile, Unfortunately, he was not wearing armor like Amilyn and that made him more vulnerable to the consequences of the fall.

“Stand still, I need to check,” Amilyn said and checked his body for injuries.

“I really believe you don't check just for injuries Admiral,” Poe said in an amused tone while Amilyn patted him on his butt. She gave him a slap on the butt and a naughty smile. He returned the favor slapping her butt as well. Both burst into laughter and hugged each other.

Phasma was certain Dameron had placed at least two dozen bombs in the hyperdrive room. She was equally certain that most of them would blow up within minutes, before the bomb disposal squad had time to defuse them. After all, why to risk your life infiltrating the hyperdrive only to let your enemies neutralize your efforts?

Were they still in the room? Phasma checked the room schematics in her datapad. There were four exits but if they had used them the dozens of First Order troops waiting in each exit would have captured them. They were either hidden inside the room or they had found another escape route.

Phasma checked her datapad again. There was a pipe passing under the hyperspace drive room that led to a trash compactor. Wasting no time, she assigned ten members of her platoon to remain outside the room just in case and ordered the rest to follow her.

Unfortunately, the trash compactor was too far away for her troops or other reinforcements to be there in time and secure its door. Phasma had to stop them before they escaped it and there was only one way to do that.

“There are enemy infiltrators in compactor TNX-1138,” Phasma told the compactor maintenance personnel through the intercom. “Burn them.”

“Is it really hot or do I feel hot because I wear stormtrooper armor?” Amilyn asked.

“It is not your idea,” Poe said, worried. “This compactor actually acts as an incinerator. They throw paper and plastic and they burn it when it fills or... ”

“... or when they want to kill enemies trapped inside it. They have found us,” Amilyn said, equally worried. Poe looked at her, a determined look on his eyes.

“Since they know we are here, there is no need for discretion.” Dameron opened his briefcase, removed one bomb from it, activated it and placed it on the compactor door.

“Take cover!” he screamed and took cover behind the pile of the big, plastic bags, followed by BB-8 and Amilyn. 

Five seconds later, a powerful explosion blew the door up and tossed the pile of bags aside. Fortunately, neither the two officers nor the droid were harmed.

“You really like blowing things up Mr. Bond,” Amilyn told him in a playful tone. BB-8 gave an amused bleep.

“It is one of the things I like in life,” Poe said, equally amused. “Along with spaceships and gorgeous Vice Admirals.” Amilyn gave him a hug and BB-8 gave him a bleep.

“And of course my beloved droid,” he said, patting the droid's head. “Let's go now!” Both Amilyn and BB-8 followed him as he exited the garbage compactor.

“I suppose we won't make it to the hangar where your transport is,” Amilyn said, seconds after she exited the compactor.

“No way,” Poe admitted. “OK, we go for Plan B: we steal a starfighter.” He looked at Amilyn with a seductive smile. “Ready Mrs. Trench?”

“Always Mr. Bond,” came the reply. Poe checked his datapad, and they entered a corridor that led to a starfighter hangar. While walking through the corridor a platoon of stormtroopers – not Phasma's platoon – passed next to them heading towards the compactor. Poe and Amilyn remained calm – they were both war veterans after all – and kept moving as if nothing had happened.

The moment Poe, Amilyn, and BB-8 exited the corridor, they heard a message from the loudspeakers:

“Warning! There are two enemy infiltrators in the area! One is a man disguised as an officer and the other one is a woman disguised as a stormtrooper. All stormtroopers are ordered to remove their helmets until further notice.”

“I recognize the voice,” Holdo said. “It is Phasma.”

“Any chances she will join us?” Poe asked. He and Amilyn knew the real reason why she had lowered the shields in Starkiller.

“I don't think so,” Amilyn replied. “She has conscience but she is not Finn. It is probably she who had the compactor activated.”

Captain Phasma and twenty of her troops – including one with a rocket launcher – exited a big elevator and headed for a nearby hangar. She had already learned Dameron and Holdo had escaped the compactor, so the obvious choice for them would be to try to steal a spaceship.

Phasma had some regrets about killing Holdo. Amilyn had been more understanding and supportive than her own people had been. Would she be able to pull the trigger and kill her?

After exiting a second corridor, Amilyn, Poe and BB-8 reached the hangar. The door was locked and there were two sentries guarding it. The trio slowly approached them.

“Are there people in the hangar?” he asked the two stormtroopers guarding the door.

“No, we evacuated it to prevent two enemy infiltrators from entering it. It is locked though and … hey wait a minute!” The two stormtroopers had just realized who the two infiltrators were.

The stormtroopers were fast but Poe Dameron was faster. Within a fraction of a second, he drew his pistol and shot one of them. At the same time, Amilyn rushed to the other one, trying to punch him. He instinctively pushed her back but doing so made him miss his chance to draw his weapon, giving Dameron the opportunity to shoot him as well.

Upon hearing the shots, stormtroopers rushed to the area. Poe and Amilyn took the dead stormtroopers' rifles and opened fire while BB-8 tried to hack the door. Blowing the door up would be a faster solution but Poe and Amilyn were too close to it to survive the explosion. Moving to a safe distance was also out of the question because doing so would expose them to enemy fire.

Poe and Amilyn kept firing in rapid fire mode. They didn't hit any enemies but the important thing was to prevent the enemy from hitting them or the droid.

“Come on buddy,” Poe said. BB-8 bleeped loudly. He was trying his best to deactivate the electronic lock. A few seconds later, the door opened, much to Poe's and Amilyn's relief.

“OK Amilyn,” Poe said. Amilyn entered the hangar, her weapon pointing forward, ready to fire on enemy troops.

Fortunately, there was none in sight. The droid followed her and so did Dameron who fired a final burst and pressed a button next to the door, closing it. To keep the enemy from opening it, BB-8 jammed it from the inside using his hacking skills.

Poe and Amilyn reached the center of the hangar. It was about sixty meters long, forty meters wide, and five meters high. There were ten TIE fighters parked in it, all of them two-seaters with the pilot's seat facing forward and the tail gunner's seat facing backward. They were arranged in an increasing sequence and each one was assigned a number from 001 to 010.

“Which one are we going to steal?” Amilyn asked.

“You know which one Mrs. Trench,” Poe said with a smile. Amilyn's eyes fell on number 007.

“We need to open the external hangar doors,” Poe said, giving Amilyn his briefcase. She took it and headed towards them to plant the remaining explosives. In the meantime, BB-8 entered the starfighter and Poe sat on the pilot's seat and started the pre-flight sequence.

Phasma and her twenty troopers finally reached the hangar door. Ten stormtroopers led by a sergeant were outside, their guns aimed at the door.

“We have cornered them inside the hangar,” the sergeant said.

“Why haven't you entered yet?” Phasma asked.

“They've hacked the electronic lock,” the sergeant asked. “My access card doesn't work.”

“Don't worry,” Phasma said. “Mine will.”

Phasma pointed at the door and gestured for the stormtrooper with the rocket launcher to move forward. The trooper nodded and loaded his weapon. Five seconds later, his rocket completely demolishing the door.

The moment the door was blown up, Phasma activated the laser aiming beam in her rifle and checked the scope. Satisfied, she gestured for her troops to follow her. She was determined to kill Poe Dameron herself.

Amilyn had just finished planting the explosives when she heard the explosion. She looked at the hangar door and saw the smoke coming from it. She rushed to the starfighter.

Phasma was the first to enter the hangar. It took her only two seconds to see the open cockpit of one of the fighters. A man was sitting inside it and he was checking its controls: Poe Dameron.

Phasma stopped and took careful aim using the scope of her rifle. She could observe the laser beam getting closer to Dameron's head until she could see the red dot on his right temple.

Dameron seemed oblivious to the threat, probably being too busy to notice her. After all, he had just activated the starfighter engines and they made too much noise for him to notice Phasma's footsteps or even the explosion.

Phasma took a deep breath, put her finger on the trigger …

… when suddenly a woman wearing stormtrooper armor appeared in front of Dameron! Phasma immediately recognized her. She was Amilyn Holdo! She was standing in front of Dameron, blocking her aim. Amilyn looked at Phasma, the red dot of her rifle on her forehead. The Vice Admiral had a calm and determined look in her eyes.

Phasma could simply pull the trigger. Her shot could penetrate Holdo's head and there would be nothing between her and Dameron. But she couldn't do that. For some reason she hesitated. Perhaps, it was the kindness and respect Amilyn had shown her. She knew what Phasma's biggest secret was and she had kept it. Amilyn had listened, offering Phasma understanding and support. She could not bring herself to kill Amilyn. She lowered her rifle the moment more of her troops entered the hangar.

“I don't have a clear shot,” she said. “Go for them!”

Amilyn entered the spaceship and sat at the tail-gunner's seat. Immediately, Poe closed both cockpits and pulled a lever. A steel cable fell from the rear of the spacecraft.

“I was dizzy from the torture last time,” Poe said a bit nervously, referring to his escape with Finn. He had forgotten to remove the cable back then, nearly crashing the spaceship.

“None ever blamed you for that Poe,” Amilyn said in a reassuring tone.

Poe pushed a button and the spaceship moved forward. Meanwhile, Amilyn fired a burst of plasma bolts with the tail gun forcing Phasma and her troops to duck for cover.

A big explosion shattered the hangar. Dameron had just used his datapad to activate the explosives Amilyn had planted. The explosives destroyed the locks and their shockwave pushed the hangar doors outward. Only the energy shield prevented the loss of air in the hangar.

“Get out of here,” Phasma ordered. The stormtrooper with the rocket launcher tried to fire one shot with his weapon but Amilyn was faster and shot him with the tail gun, wounding him on the leg.

“Let's go!” Poe said and pressed a button. The starfighter shot forward like a cannonball.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The trash compactor scene is a shout-out to the same scene from Star Wars IV: A New Hope. 
> 
> Fortunately, Poe was better organized (he had Conadi's schemantics and Q's assistance after all) and he and Amilyn landed on a monster-free compactor. (OK, it was a little hot in there but Poe had Q's bombs to escape!)
> 
> The scene where Phasma uses her 'card' to open the door is a shout-out to Terminator: Judgement Day where T-800 uses a grenade launcher to open a door.


	17. Leaving Supremacy, Reaching Coruscant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe and Amilyn have to evade enemy missiles and starfighters. Poe also has to make a statement to Hux.
> 
> At the same time, Finn, Rey, and Chewie reach Coruscant.
> 
> Unfortunately, Kylo Ren is on his way to Coruscant as well ...

"Incoming missile in our tail!" Amilyn said in an alarmed tone.

"Can you shoot it down?" Poe asked.

"No! We have to evade!" Poe didn't argue with Amilyn. He knew she was an experienced officer and she had a better view of the threat. In a swift maneuver, he pushed the starfighter downwards.

The missile chased them for a few seconds until Poe turned the engine off and pushed a button. Amilyn saw a small red canister jettison from the fighter.

"Close your eyes Amilyn!" Amilyn did exactly that. Soon the canister lit up and the missile ignored the starfighter to focus on the glowing canister. A few seconds later, its warhead exploded.

"It was a heat-seeking missile," Poe explained. "I fired a decoy that radiated light and heat. It was a close call though."

"Your timing was just right Poe," Amilyn said. "Too soon and the missile would have missed the decoy. Too late, and it would have blown us up before the decoy got activated."

Poe smiled. He was a great pilot but he still enjoyed compliments ... especially from Amilyn.

Soon, they gained distance from Supremacy and they passed the capital ship defensive ring. Dameron was constantly zig-zagging the spacecraft to spoil the aim of the enemy turbolaser gunners. A few minutes later, they were out of range of enemy turbo lasers and tractor beams.

"Our only fear now is enemy starfighters," Poe said.

As if on cue, two enemy starfighters approached them. Poe immediately turned his fighter to face them.

"Aren't we supposed to avoid them?" Amilyn asked, a bit puzzled.

"They are one-seaters and they are lighter and faster than us. We can't outrun them, so we'll shoot them down. Ready Mrs. Trench?" he said in an encouraging tone.

"Always ready, Mr. Bond!"

The first enemy starfighter had almost turned to face them when Dameron fired a three second burst against it. It hit the canopy and one of the wing fuel tanks. The enemy spaceship spiraled out of control.

The second fighter hadn't completed its turn and missed them, passing next to them. Amilyn Holdo took careful aim and fired two two-second bursts against it, hitting and damaging it.

“You really are a great pilot Poe,” she said, full of relief and admiration.

“You really are a great gunner Amilyn,” he said, equally admiring. “Especially considering you were out of practice.”

“Yeah, the First Order hospitality was terrible,” Amilyn said in a light tone. ”No spas, no hair salons, no gunnery practice, and terrible food. It tasted like sawdust mixed with paint.”

“Such a cruel world we live in Mrs. Trench,” Poe said and turned the radio on. “OK, time to say hello to our friend Armitage.” There was a big smile on his face.

Armitage Hux was furious when he approached one of the heavily guarded entrances to the hyperspace drive. Upon approaching, the heavily armed stormtroopers presented arms but Hux ignored them.

“Dammit, what happened here?” he asked. He already knew about Holdo's escape thanks to his archenemy Dameron. But causing a sabotage on top of the escape was another can of worms. Even worse, Dameron and Holdo had stolen a starfighter and escaped from Supremacy.

It was at that moment that his datapad made a sound, indicating someone was trying to contact him. He checked the screen. It was from the bridge.

“Supreme Commander,” the voice said, “there is a man who wants to talk to you. He calls from one of our starfighters. He claims to be Poe Dameron.”

Hux nearly threw his datapad on the wall in anger. It took him a lot of effort to restrain himself and allow the connection.

“Hello, Hux there?” a male voice said.

“It is Supreme Commander Hux,” came the angry reply. “Who the hell are you?”

Inside the stolen starfighter, Poe Dameron looked at Amilyn, a smile on his face. “I can't resist the temptation,” he whispered her.

“The name is Bond! James Bond!” Poe said in a mockingly aristocratic tone. Hux recognized the voice of his archenemy.

“I don't watch silly films Dameron. What do you want?”

“I have bad news and worse news Hux. The bad ones: you have twenty seconds to evacuate the hyperdrive room before my bombs go off.”

Hux considered that for a second and immediately gave the order for the bomb disposal squads to leave the room. They left just in time. The bombs went off two seconds after the last of them had exited the room.

Poe could hear the sounds of the explosions from the radio. He smiled. His plan was working so far. For the time being, Supremacy had lost the ability for hyperspace jumps.

“Still there Hux?” Dameron asked.

“Yes.”

“The worse news are that since you cannot escape in hyperspace now, our forces will attack and destroy your flagship. Imagine the blow to your operational capabilities, not to mention the loss of prestige for the First Order.”

“You have to succeed first Dameron. And why to reveal your plan to me anyway?”

“To give you the opportunity to save face and accept a negotiated peace with us.”

“Screw you Dameron! Peace will only come when the First Order controls everything, which is only weeks away. Your sabotage only gave you a few days and even that is a generous estimate.”

“Last chance Hux. Do you start negotiations?”

“Go to hell Dameron!” The line went dead.

One hour later, the preliminary damage report came. The damage to the hyperdrive systems was substantial and Supremacy would be unable to jump to hyperspace for days.

Hux considered that. An attack against their flagship was always a possibility. Granted, Supremacy had very powerful turbolasers, energy shields and a strengthened hull to withstand enemy hits and ramming attacks. But would that be enough? What if their enemies gathered hundreds of spaceships and used them for a big swarming attack? Without the ability to jump to hyperspace, they would be unable to evade them.

There were ten capital ships surrounding Supremacy and providing additional protection. Under the circumstances, how many more were necessary for the First Order flagship to be safe?

After some calculations, Hux concluded that adding twenty more as an additional line of defense would solve the problem. Soon, a number of capital ships guarding the First Order shipyard planets received orders to jump to hyperspace around Supremacy.

His biggest concern now was Kylo Ren. Sooner or later, he would take a break from his search for the Artifact and visit Supremacy. How would he explain Holdo's escape and the sabotage to him?

“And the worst part Mrs. Trench?” Poe said in mock outrage. “He said Bond films are silly.”

“A jerkass with a bad taste in movies,” Amilyn said in mock disappointment. “Where is our world going Mr. Bond?”

A few minutes passed. Poe gave BB-8 the helm and used his datapad sensors to search the spaceship for First Order transmitters. Fortunately, there were none.

After some tinkering, Poe and Amilyn found how to make their seats recline. It was as if they had one bed for themselves. Realizing what Poe was up to, BB-8 discreetly turned to face the space and the stars and remained motionless.

“Thank you buddy,” Poe said. “Only bleep if they attack us.”

“Well, Mr. Bond,” Amilyn asked, “what is our next move?”

“Well Mrs. Trench,” Poe said with a playful smile, “it will be some hours before we reach headquarters. And I really feel uncomfortable wearing a First Order uniform.”

Amilyn looked at him, a big, playful smile on her face.

“OK Sylvia. Time to remove those clothes,” he said and started undressing her.

“Oh James!”

While Poe and Amilyn were on their way to the Resistance headquarters, Chewie, Finn, and Rey were on their way to the Millennium Falcon.

This time, their journey from the desert back to Tatooine was uneventful. The Jawas who had attacked them had moved to another location.

It was two hours after midnight when the three of them reached the outskirts of the village. Morric was there, waiting for them.

"Welcome back adventurers," Morric said upon seeing them. "How was your mission?"

The trio spent the following minutes informing Morric about their night journey, their near death against the Jawas, their visit to Kenobi's cave and their encounter with his Force Ghost. For safety reasons, they chose not to say a word about the Artifact. You can never be to careful with something that powerful.

"Obi-Wan was the best friend I ever had. I miss him so much ... even after so many decades." Morric was in tears.

"I am so sorry Morric," Finn said. "Master Kenobi is gone, but even dead he helped us a lot. We can save billions of lives thanks to him."

"You are right," Morric said. "Good luck to your journey ... and one more thing. There are two First Order spies close to the Millennium Falcon.”

“Thanks for the info Morric,” Rey said. “Goodbye and take care of yourself.”

“May the Force be with you,” Morric said and saluted them.

To neutralize the two spies without resorting to noise and excessive violence, the trio formed a plan that relied on deception. Finn would act as bait while Rey and Chewie would form an ambush.

About three hundred meters away from the Falcon, Chewie and Rey let Finn move in the open towards the spaceship while they turned to the left, and started walking towards the general direction of the enemy spies. A few minutes later, they were in position and waited for Finn to reach the area.

“Hey, look at that,” one of the spies said. “One of them.”

Their movement when they saw Finn was all that Rey and Chewie wanted. Soon, they knew the exact location of their enemies and Rey focused on one of them and used the Force to manipulate his mind. A few seconds later, the spy stood up and started walking towards Finn. The other agent looked at him, shocked.

“Hey, where are you going?” he asked.

Although Chewie was tall and heavy, he could walk very silently when he wanted to. Distracted by the sight of his colleague, the remaining agent realized him approaching from behind only a tenth of a second before the wookie's punch left him unconscious. The second spy heard the noise and turned to observe but Finn and Chewie surrounded him. Soon he was unconscious as well.

The next minute, the three of them were inside the Falcon. Rey and Chewie went to the cockpit and Finn manned one of the anti-aircraft guns. A few minutes later, the Falcon cleared the night sky of Tatooine. Its next destination was Coruscant.

Inside the Mos Eisley Cantina, the two First Order officers heard the noise of the spaceship engines. Worried, they went outside to see what had happened.

Two minutes later, they were outside and the Millennium Falcon was nowhere to be seen. Only their agents were there, unconscious. They looked at the sky. The Falcon was just a small, fast moving dot up there. A few seconds later, it jumped to hyperspace and they lost it forever.

“OK Captain,” the lieutenant asked, “now what?”

“We should have reported the spaceship when it arrived. It was a mistake we didn't,” the captain replied. “But I hesitated because it involved too much red tape and they would reprimand us if we were wrong.”

“That's right Captain,” the lieutenant said. “But they will listen now.”

“And listen to what?” the Captain asked. “That we had them, we let them go to the desert or wherever they went, came back, escaped in their spaceship and we failed to even report them the first time they came?”

“I guess we will both end up executed for negligence,” the lieutenant admitted. “So what?”

“Nothing,” the captain said. “We report nothing. If they never find out about them, we are safe. If they do, and our bosses somehow connect that to us, we are screwed but that will happen anyway if we report what happened.”

“But what about our mission?” the lieutenant said. “The First Order? Our vision for the Galaxy?”

“Well Lieutenant,” the Captain said, “let me ask you something.”

“What is it Captain?”

“Would you die for any of above? Because here is your chance.”

The Lieutenant looked at the Captain for ten long seconds. “No,” he finally admitted.

“OK then, let's revive our agents, write our very short report, and go for another round of drinks.”

“Alright Captain, the drinks are on me.”

On board Kylo Ren's personal capital ship, a messenger entered Ren's throne room. He found the Supreme Leader examining something that looked like a metallic prosthetic hand.

“What is it?” Kylo Ren asked, without looking at the messenger.

“Your daily reports Supreme Leader,” the messenger replied. Kylo used the Force to grab the datapad from the messenger's hands. Within seconds, he found what he was looking for: the daily report from Tatooine. It only contained three words.

“Nothing to report,” he read loudly. How disappointing! So much time and effort for so few results! He had hoped that part of the Artifact had been there or at least someone from the Resistance had visited the planet and their agents would kidnap them for interrogation.

Kylo Ren looked at the remains of the prosthetic hand. It had once belonged to Luke Skywalker and made him think of Ahch-To and his recent visit there. Checking the datapad again, he looked at the report the Knight of Ren stationed there had written. Apparently, he had made some progress regarding the Artifact.

“Inform the ship Commander,” Kylo Ren said, “we are going to Coruscant.”

After a successful hyperspace jump, the Millennium Falcon reached the night skies of Coruscant. Upon looking at its surface, both Finn and Rey were amazed. They had never seen a planet like that. It was not covered in sand like Jakku or water like Ahch-To. It was covered with buildings and more buildings.

“How many people live down there Chewie?” Rey asked. Chewie answered the question.

“Almost a trillion?” Rey was shocked. “How can so many people live in one planet?”

Chewie went on to explain there were buildings with many floors called skyscrapers that housed thousands of people each. The entire planet was covered in them. There were no seas, no deserts, no forests, no cultivated land. Coruscant was a giant city of hundreds of billions, the most densely populated place in the Galaxy.

The Millennium Falcon approached the planet and Chewie looked out the window. Afterwards, he checked the radar console and once more looked outside.

“What is the matter Chewie?” Rey asked. Chewie explained her.

“Sometimes the evidence is the absence of evidence?” Rey asked. R2 bleeped twice. Rey looked at Finn and he looked back at her.

“OK,” Finn said. “Coruscant is a densely populated planet. To keep it safe from external threats, you need at least dozens of capital ships to guard it at any time. Yet, there is no evidence of any military presence.”

“Finn is right,” Rey said. “It is as if we can go everywhere unopposed. Where are their fleets Chewie?”

Chewie explained Finn and Rey that the situation had deteriorated a lot in Coruscant. The planet had been in turmoil for a long time and the New Republic government could barely impose order. Han Solo had Chewie exploited that to visit the planet undetected during the last years.

“It made smuggling easier, right?” Rey said. Chewie gave her an apologetic nod.

“It's OK, I am not going to judge you,” Rey said. Chewie smiled.

When the First Order destroyed the Hosnian System, the leadership of the New Republic along with its legitimacy were gone. The local authorities in Coruscant suddenly lost their motivation to do anything about the situation. Parts of the planet drifted into anarchy. In others – especially close to military bases – army units took over command and either waited for someone to give them orders or established their own de facto independent states with their commanding officers as the leaders.

So far the First Order hadn't invaded the planet because they had given priority to industrial centers, leaving financial and administrative ones like Coruscant for later. They only made some quick bombing raids to hit some very specific targets.

“I wonder what we will find down there,” Finn said.

Chewie piloted the Falcon to an old and abandoned airstrip. As he explained them, the airstrip was officially closed but unofficially Han Solo knew the man who controlled it. It had been Han's main base of smuggling operations during the years between leaving his wife and joining the Resistance for the last time.

“Is the man a friend of Han Solo?” Rey asked. Chewie replied her.

“Not exactly?” Rey asked. “And Han earned the rights to land on the airstrip in a game of cards? Sounds good to me.” Chewie made another comment.

“He cheated in the game?” Rey asked. “Well, the other guy was not a law abiding citizen anyway. OK, I won't tell a word to anyone, including Leia Organa.” Chewie gave her a light pat on the shoulder.

Ten minutes later, the Millennium Falcon landed on the abandoned airstrip. Everything seemed normal … except the three people carrying rocket launchers and the twelve carrying rifles who surrounded the spaceship.

“Chewie,” Rey asked. “Are you sure Han's friend is really friendly?


	18. Coruscant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finn, Rey, and Chewie have to fight their way to the old Jedi Temple of Coruscant. 
> 
> At the same time, Kylo Ren reached the planet and prepares to land on it.

Rey looked at Finn and both discreetly touched their weapons. Fifteen heavily armed people were around the Falcon. Three of them had rocket launchers and aimed them at the cockpit. Rey wondered whether the Force could protect them in a situation like this.

Only Chewie did nothing and remained calm and unconcerned. He raised both hands in surrender ... and then burst into laughter. So did the fifteen men outside. Chewie lowered his hands and patted Finn and Rey on the shoulders explaining what was going on.

"A weird sense of humor?" Rey said. "Yes, I can see that." She was still not totally convinced. A few minutes later, Chewie parked the Falcon inside a hangar and put R2 in charge of it. The trio disembarked and a man in his early sixties approached them.

"Hello Chewie," the man said in a friendly tone. "It's been a long time. More than two years I think." Chewie nodded.

"So where is Han Solo? Did you argue with him?" Chewie gave the man a sad look and looked at the ground before answering.

"I am sorry about Han," the man said. The next second he looked at Finn and Rey in a puzzled look and back at Chewie. He didn't say a word but his eyes had already asked: who are these people? Chewie gave him an annoyed look.

"Fine, fine, It's not my business who they are. Now Chewie tell me: why are you here?"

In theory, the Millennium Falcon could approach the old Jedi temple and land next to it. In reality though, the surrounding area was probably covered with debris, making landing impossible. For that reason, Chewie had explained Finn and Rey their only hope of success would be by using a small repursorlift vehicle.

"Going downtown and need a vehicle? That's very dangerous. But, that's your life, not mine. I can rent you one ... but that's something special not included in our usual arrangement."

Chewie gave the man a resigned look and tossed him a small box containing golden coins. The man took the box, opened it and counted them one by one. Satisfied, he closed the box, put it in his pocket and pointed to a battered repursorlift transport at the end of the runway.

"He was not exactly friendly, was he?" Rey asked. Chewie replied her.

"Survival comes first and friendship second," Rey said. "Fine, I get that. There is anarchy here and the man has to survive. But wasn't he concerned whether our mission was important or something? That bringing peace to the Galaxy was something even a cynic should care about?"

Chewie explained that such people didn't care about the Galaxy. Their circle of concern only had them and a few other people in it. They were too busy surviving the day to care about the First Order, the peace or the Jedi Order.

"But what if the First Order captures Coruscant?" Finn asked.

Chewie explained such people could survive anything. So far they had survived the Old Republic, the Empire, and the New Republic. They could survive the First Order as well.

It was always the same story: the new masters either ignored them or used them to do things when they didn't want to get their own hands dirty. If the new masters hunted them down, the criminals adapted: they changed location, they bribed the right people (such as police officers and judges) and kept themselves off the loop.

It all sounded a bit cynical but it was the truth. If Dameron's droid hadn't come across her in Jakku, Rey would still be on that planet trying to survive another week, just like the man who had rented them the repursorlift. Would she had joined the fight for peace and freedom otherwise?

It was night and the streets of Coruscant were deserted. Chewie was piloting the small vehicle trying to avoid the burned vehicles that blocked their path and the debris of destroyed buildings.

"It is as if we are in a war zone after the war just ended," Finn said. "Burned vehicles, blown up buildings ... what happened here?" Chewie was about to answer when Rey suddenly activated her lightsaber.

Leia had advised Rey not to use her lightsaber unless necessary. Unlike Tatooine though, there was no other option: two hidden snipers fired one blaster bolt each against Chewie and Rey had to use her lightsaber to deflect them. At the same time, Finn drew his blaster rifle and set it to rapid fire mode and Chewie sped the vehicle up.

The snipers kept firing and soon more people joined them. Rey kept deflecting their projectiles while Finn fired against the most obvious targets, trying to keep them pinned down.

There were many obstacles in their path, such as debris and burned vehicles and all of them could hide enemies. Rey and Finn had to be extremely careful at all times.

An enemy emerged from the hulk of a burned vehicle on their left, holding a thermal grenade. Two more enemies emerged from another vehicle firing at them. Finn opened fire against the first man, killing him, while Rey deflected the blaster bolts the other two fired on them.

Unfortunately, the man with the grenade survived long enough to toss it to the vehicle. There was only one thing Finn could do to save them.

“Grenade!” he shouted. At the same time he opened fire against the two people Rey was defending from. Both of them ducked for cover, giving Rey the opportunity to focus on the grenade. She looked at it and used the Force to stop it in mid-air. The next moment she Force-threw it to the two enemies Finn had pinned down.

The two enemies saw the grenade coming but it blew up before they had a chance to react. At the same time, Chewie made a sharp turn, avoiding something that looked like a mine. Despite the turn, the object exploded and shook the repursorlift. Fortunately, it kept moving and only suffered superficial damage. Apart from shaking a bit, Finn, Rey, and Chewie were OK.

A woman carrying a rocket launcher suddenly appeared in front of them. Next to her, two women carrying machine guns opened fire. The woman with the launcher took careful aim.

Against normal opponents, the three women would have succeeded. But they had no chance against Finn and Rey. Rey used her lightsaber to deflect the dozens of plasma bolts fired against them while Finn fired a well-aimed burst that killed the woman with the launcher before she had a chance to fire. Two more bursts and the other two women were dead.

After the three women were killed and after Chewie passed another round of obstacles, the trio found themselves in an open space with only a handful of burned vehicles to block their path. Enemy fire became more and more distant and more and more inaccurate.

A few minutes later, they reached their destination, the old Jedi temple of Coruscant. For thousands of years, the temple had been the center of all Jedi activity. It had been the place where the Masters had consulted with each other and the Padawan had received their training in the ways of the Force.

But all that ended decades ago. The moment Anakin Skywalker turned to the Dark Side and became Darth Vader, Palpatine ordered him to destroy the temple and kill everyone in it. Dozens of Padawan lost their lives that day, many of them by Vader's own lightsaber. Afterwards, Vader had the temple searched and everything of interest taken for study. Afterwards, the Imperial stormtroopers put the temple on fire, leaving it a destroyed hulk.

That was the sight Rey, Finn, and Chewie saw when they approached. Although more than fifty years had passed from that fateful day, the marks of destruction were still apparent. Wherever vegetation hadn't covered the building, Rey could see the burned walls, the broken windows, and the collapsed roof of a place that once upon a time had been the center of the Jedi Order. Tears fell from her eyes.

“It is as the people there were my brothers and sisters,” Rey said. “And I have lost them. And from a certain point of view, they were.” Finn gave her a gentle pat on the back.

Chewie expertly piloted the vehicle through a big hole on the temple wall. The small vehicle passed the hole and entered a big room that once upon a time had been a lightsaber training area for Padawans.

“OK,” Rey said. “Let us disembark.”

A rat suddenly landed on Finn's shoulder. Finn tossed it away using his right hand. A cat immediately rushed to capture it but the rat was faster and ran away. Finn turned his flashlight on, only to realize there were many more rats on the floor. A number of cats entered from the door to chase them.

“Once upon a time,” Rey said, “this place was full of children. They were training how to defend against enemies and how to better help the Galaxy.”

Rey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She was Force-sensitive and that made her feel the presence of those children. But there was one more person in the room, someone taller, stronger in the Force … and evil.

“Darth Vader was here,” Rey said, “more than fifty years ago.” She closed her eyes again. She could see the room with Vader's eyes. Vader drew his lightsaber, activated it, and massacred innocent children. More tears fell from Rey's eyes.

The vision soon ended and Rey opened her eyes. There were no enemies, no Padawan and no danger for her, Finn, or Chewie. Only a couple of rats who had reluctantly exited their nests but quickly hid again.

It was time for them to find the second part of the Artifact. Fortunately, R2 had assisted Rey in compiling a map of the old Jedi temple. Checking the map on her datapad, Rey found what she was looking for.

“Follow me,” she said. “There is a hidden basement entrance nearby. The Artifact is in there.”

Above the skies of Coruscant, an armada of capital ships reached the atmosphere. Most prominent among them was the heavy cruiser Darth Vader. Inside it, the leader of the First Order looked at the main radar screen on the bridge.

“I see no spaceship activity,” Kylo Ren said.

“Supreme Leader, Coruscant has descended into a state of anarchy,” the Vader commanding officer replied. “The ground, air and space defense networks have collapsed. However, there are many rogue units around and lots of crime lords. It is dangerous down there.”

Kylo Ren thought for a few seconds. Should he delegate the task of finding the Artifact to one of his officers? Or should he do it himself?

The answer was rather obvious. The purges he and Hux had initiated had left the First Order with loyal but incompetent officers. So, despite the danger, he had to do the job himself.

“Send reconnaissance and interceptor starfigters,” Kylo Ren ordered. “Have my personal transport and two battalions of stormtroopers ready. I am going down.”

“Here we are,” Rey said, looking at a heavy stone statue representing a scene from an old battle. “The path to the Artifact is under the statue.”

“How do we move the statue?” Finn asked. “It appears to be bolted on the ground. Will you use your lightsaber to cut it?”

“Let's find out,” Rey said. She activated her lightsaber and tried to hit the statue with it. Nothing happened. The statue was made from some sort of specialized lightsaber-resistant material. Disappointed, Rey deactivated her lightsaber.

“Is there a lever we pull, a button we push, a place we put explosives on?” Finn asked.

“I am afraid not,” Rey replied. “There must be a certain way to move it. If we use another one, we might trigger a trap and the second part of the Artifact might be lost forever.”

Suddenly, the Force Ghost of Luke Skywalker appeared in front of Rey and looked at her straight in the eyes. Rey looked at Luke and the Jedi Master looked her back. However, two seconds later he disappeared.

But these two seconds were enough. The moment Luke Skywalker disappeared, Rey knew the answer to Finn's question.

“Finn,” Rey said, “it is actually very simple. It is another test for me. I have to use the Force again.”

Rey's first test in Tatooine had been about reflexes. The second one had been about mental connection to other Force users. This one …

“This is a test about my ability to manipulate the laws of physics. The only way to move the statue … is by raising it.”

To better help her concentrate, Finn and Chewie exited the room and kept an eye open for intruders. Alone in the room, Rey closed her eyes, took a deep breath and concentrated really hard. Despite having her eyes closed, she could she the room around her as if it was brightly lit. She could feel the statue's presence on her fingertips, as if really touching it. She could feel its enormous volume and weight as if trying to raise it with her own arms. But she could also feel a lightness and a connection to the Force, a connection that would help her accomplish her task.

Rey could feel her mind connecting with the Force and the Force surrounding the statue. She knew what that meant: you cannot lift the statue for yourself, you connect with the Force to lift it for you. And the stronger your connection and your concentration, the stronger you can influence your environment.

It took Rey a lot of time and a lot of failed attempts till she fully immersed herself with the Force, making herself part of it. It was only then that she managed to slowly but steadily lift the enormous weight of the statue and place it next to the room entrance.

Finn and Chewie looked at the statue in surprise. It was a big statue, weighting at least two tonnes. Yet Rey had made it!

“Well done Rey,” Finn said in amazement and hugged her. “Look,” he said, pointing to a hole on the floor, “you opened the entrance to the basement.”

Rey looked at the hole. According to her schematics, that was where the second part of the Artifact was hidden. Taking a deep breath, she activated her lightsaber and entered it. Slowly, she descended the steps to the basement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in a dilemma whether to add Lando Calrissian in that chapter (as the person who rents Chewie the transport) but I decided against it because the role would be too small.
> 
> (I am not done with Star Wars fan fiction. There is a role for Lando in another story ... but not in this one.)


	19. The last piece of the Artifact

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey is in the Jedi temple basement trying to obtain the last part of the Artifact.
> 
> Meanwhile, Kylo Ren tries to organize an ambush...

After descending the stairs, Rey found herself in front of a long and narrow corridor. The corridor was pitch black and only the light from her lightsaber partially defeated the darkness.

She looked at the floor. There were rats everywhere, just like the rest of the temple. Their intense smell inside such an enclosed space almost made her faint, giving her an intense desire to leave the corridor.

“Calm down and focus Rey,” she admonished herself. “You can't let billions die just because you cannot stand the smell for a few minutes.” With that thought in mind, Rey marched forward.

At the end of the corridor, there was a big rock blocking the path to the room where the Artifact was. Determined, Rey used her lightsaber and tried to cut it …

“Supreme Leader,” an officer said. “Our TIE fighters are encountering resistance. There are people with portable anti-aircraft launchers hidden in the buildings. It is still too risky for us to land close to the temple.”

“Any sign of Resistance activity?”

“No, Supreme Leader. No spaceships appear near the temple.” Kylo was skeptical. Something was off and he knew it.

Kylo knew Luke Skywalker was no fool. The moment he set foot on Ahch-To, the old Jedi Master would realize how close the First Order was in obtaining the Artifact. Even as a Force Ghost, Luke would contact his sister Leia to warn her.

What would Leia do? She would send people to find the Artifact. But how could the Resistance with their limited resources land on a dangerous planet like Coruscant?

“But of course,” he told himself, connecting the dots. Luke Skywalker, Leia his mother, Han Solo his father, Chewie, the Millennium Falcon … The Resistance would not attack Coruscant like a regular army. They would sneak in like smugglers, using Han Solo's numerous contacts to achieve that.

“Where are your contacts father?” Kylo Ren asked. Knowing how much Han Solo loved the Millennium Falcon, Kylo deduced his father had used a spaceport big enough to accommodate the legendary spaceship.

“Search for all abandoned airfields in the vicinity of the old Jedi Temple,” Kylo Ren ordered the officer.

Nothing! Just nothing! Just like the statue, the lightsaber could not damage the rock. To clear the path, Rey would have to use the Force again. Rey closed her eyes trying to concentrate when she heard a familiar voice, the voice of Master Skywalker.

“Rey?”

“Master Skywalker?” Rey said, looking at his Force Ghost.

“Hello again Rey,” the Jedi Master said. “I see you have passed Master Kenobi's obstacles and have obtained the first part of the Artifact.”

“Yes, there were two challenges I passed Master Skywalker,” Rey said and described them. Luke listened her very carefully.

“Yes, reflexes and mental connectedness to the Force,” Luke said. 

“Congratulations Rey. But these were easy challenges compared to the one in front of you.”

“Why do you say that Master Skywalker?”

“The previous challenges, including moving the heavy statue that blocked your path, happened when you had no obstacles to your concentration. But now, you are going to face the hardest obstacle of all: the devastating thoughts.”

“What will these thoughts be?”

“That differs from person to person. But they all have one thing in common: the moment you try to lift the rock, your worst fears, your worst nightmares and your worst problems will invade your mind. The more you will try to use the Force to lift the rock, the more powerful these thoughts will become.”

“How can I overcome them Master Skywalker?”

“You must defeat them Rey. And the only way is by finding other more powerful and more positive thoughts.”

“And what if I don't? What if I fail?”

“I know about Admiral Dameron and about his plan. But it won't be enough. If you fail to obtain the Artifact, the First Order will conquer the Galaxy. Billions will die.” Rey lowered her eyes and tried not to let her tears flow.

“I know what the Galaxy asks from you and how hard it is. You have all the reasons to retreat Rey. Nobody is going to judge you or accuse you for that.” But Rey looked at Master Skywalker, a determined look on her face.

“I won't let billions die,” Rey said. “I will face my fears and defeat them.” Luke looked at her, a big and proud smile of his face.

“This is the spirit of a true Jedi! Good luck Rey … and may the Force be with you.” And with those words, he disappeared.

Rey looked at the huge rock in front of her. There was no way to destroy it and no way to bypass it. She could only use the Force to move it.

Rey closed her eyes. She could see the corridor with her mind's eye, she could feel the presence of the Force around her and she could feel her connecting with it and channeling it to raise the huge rock. She could feel herself connecting when suddenly …

“Where is your home Rey?” an unknown voice whispered. Immediately, her concentration vanished.

Home! For her, home had been an abandoned and rusty hulk of an Imperial walker. She had lived alone there for years, without friends, family, parental supervision and other kids to play. Her life had been tough, lonely, dangerous, and without pleasure.

But Rey had found a home for herself. The Resistance ... but even more than that, the Galaxy with its millions of inhabited planets and its hundreds of trillions of people – herself included – was her new home. And she was going to fight to protect it and all the people in it.

“My home is the Galaxy,” she said. Her concentration returned within an instant.  
Once more, Rey connected to the Force. Once more, she channeled it to lift the heavy rock. But once more, the voice of doubt entered her mind.

“Where are your parents Rey?” That was a very painful comment. The vision of the room in her mind's eye vanished in her mind. She could only see darkness. She opened her eyes and tears fell from them.

Rey didn't remember her parents. For as long as she could remember herself, she was alone in Jakku. She remembered a hand she tried to grab, a hand she could not remember whether it belonged to her father or her mother. They had left her alone. They had abandoned her!

For years, Rey had to survive in a hostile environment, relying on her wits and her intelligence. There was none to help her … unless of course she wanted to become someone's slave. She taught herself how to scavenge and how to fight in hand to hand combat. Little did she know her Force potential back then.

For years Rey had felt isolated, lonely, betrayed. The people that were supposed to care about her, to nurture her, to help her grow up and mature had left her alone. Why had they done that?

For years, Rey had wondered why that had happened. Had she done something to deserve the abandonment? She didn't remember what that had been. Had her parents sold her for money to buy drinks? Had they left her in that isolated planet for her safety, intending to take her back but never did?

But after spending time with Finn, Rey understood two big truths. One, she would never learn why her parents left her. That would remain a mystery for the ages, something she would never find an answer to. And two, it was not her fault, it was not her responsibility, it was not her problem to be sad about that. It was her parents who should feel guilty about it, not her.

“And as far as family is concerned,” Rey said, “I can make my own.” Her mind focused on Finn and immediately her concentration returned.  
After intense concentration, the rock gradually started moving. Rey could see it lifted with her mind's eye. It was still less than two centimeters above ground but it kept rising when the third challenging question came.

“What if you fall to the Dark Side?” But this time Rey easily retained her concentration.

“I will think of Finn to keep myself from falling to the Dark side,” Rey said.  
“But what if Finn dies?” That interfered with her concentration … but only for a second.

“Then his memory will keep me to the Light Side of the Force!” And that was it. No more interference came. No more disturbing thoughts invaded her mind. Rey's concentration became rock solid and her connection with the Force crystal clear. She kept lifting and moving the huge rock until her path was open. She had made it!

Rey entered the small circular room at the end of the corridor. A pedestal was in the middle of it. Using her lightsaber as a makeshift flashlight, she examined it and discovered a cylindrical object on top of it. Was it the second part of the Artifact? There was only one way to find out.

Rey deactivated her lightsaber, opened her bag and removed the first part of the Artifact, the one she had obtained in Tatooine. Using her fingers, she connected the two parts of the ancient Jedi device. They matched perfectly.

“I did it,” Rey whispered. “I did it.”

It was time for Rey to test the ancient Jedi device. Holding the Artifact with both hands, she closed her eyes and concentrated hard. Suddenly, she had perspective, enhanced powers, and the ability to locate people with Force-sensitivity throughout the Galaxy.

It was then that Rey realized a grave danger for her, Finn and Chewie was approaching. She immediately rushed to the surface.

“Finn, Chewie,” Rey shouted the moment she exited the basement. “We must leave the area. Now!”

They rushed to their vehicle. Chewie sat on the driver's seat, Finn checked his rifle, and Rey activated her lightsaber.

“I tested the Artifact,” Rey said. “Kylo Ren is about to land on Coruscant!”

“Kylo Ren?” Finn asked in a worried tone.

“Kylo Ren,” Rey confirmed. The vehicle exited the Jedi temple.

“Supreme Leader,” an officer said, “we have found a seemingly abandoned airfield, not very far away from the Jedi temple.”

“I know it,” Kylo Ren said. “Is my transport ready?”

“Yes, Supreme Leader,” the officer said, “your transport and a battalion of stormtroopers are ready to deploy.”

“Let's go then,” Kylo Ren said and started walking towards the hangar bay.


	20. Escape from Coruscant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey, Finn, and Chewie have the Artifact ... but they still have to escape Kylo Ren and the First Order.

Once more, the trio had to battle enemies in order to return to the small spaceport safely. Once more, Rey deflected hits with her lightsaber, Finn shot with his rifle, and Chewie maneuvered the vehicle to avoid obstacles. The opposition was heavy but working as a team, they reached their destination safely.

Upon reaching the spaceport, they noticed something strange. A number of transports had landed around it. Chewie immediately turned the vehicle and entered a destroyed building. The moment their vehicle turned, Finn noticed the transport doors opening and people stepping outside them. Stormtroopers!

“Dammit,” Finn said when they entered the building. “They are fast.”

Chewie parked their vehicle and gestured for them to follow him. The building had a hidden entrance that led to a stair and a long and narrow tunnel.

The tunnel had been Han Solo's idea. Years ago, when the Coruscant police was still functioning, they had placed some of their agents to observe the spaceport for illegal activities. The tunnel was the only way to enter and exit the spaceport undetected.

Entering the tunnel was not enough to solve their problems though. The stormtroopers had surrounded the spaceport and were getting ready to advance. The moment the trio exited the tunnel, they would be faced with a barrage of enemy fire. They had to do something.

“Could your friend help us Chewie?” Rey asked. Chewie answered her question.

“Only if he remains out of harm's way and gets paid for the assistance? OK, I suppose we are on our own then.”

Kylo Ren gestured to the stormtrooper standing next to him. The stormtrooper nodded and gave the gangster who controlled the spaceport his datapad.  
“Have you recently seen any of these people?” Kylo Ren asked. The man took the datapad and checked the digital photographs of Poe Dameron, Leia Organa, Chewie, Finn, and Rey.

The man was in a very difficult place. On the one hand, he was an opportunist and he knew that messing with the head of the First Order was suicide. On the other hand, he still had some conscience left and he knew – like everyone in the Galaxy – about the Hosnian System destruction. Capturing Finn, Rey, and Chewie would help their plans. How many people would die because of that? He decided to buy some time for the trio, hoping Chewie still remembered the hidden tunnel.

“Leia Organa?” the man said, looking at her picture. “Well, let me think. Well … no I haven't seen her.”

Kylo Ren was losing his patience. “I am going to count to three,” he said, glaring the man.

The man looked at Ren and back to the datapad, defeated. Reluctantly, he checked the photos of Chewie, Rey, and Finn.

“OK,” the man said. “I recognize the three of them. They came here a few hours ago. But they didn't tell me where they were heading or when they were about to return.”

“They have gone to the Jedi temple,” Kylo Ren told one of his officers. “I know it is a bit of cheating to just steal the Artifact from them and not finding it ourselves … but so be it.”

After some minutes of walking in the dark tunnel, the trio emerged at its other end, inside a small and dusty warehouse. Chewie was the first to exit, aiming forward with his bowcaster. Finn and Rey followed, their weapons ready to use.  
Rey checked her bag. The completed Artifact was there and under no circumstances should it fall into First Order hands.

“There are stormtroopers everywhere,” Finn whispered while checking from a small window. “They have surrounded the hangar where the Falcon is.”

“Is there a secret passage to the hangar?” Rey asked. Chewie replied there wasn't.  
Finn, Rey, Chewie looked at each other, a determined look on their faces. If there was no passage, there was only one way to reach the Falcon.

“OK,” Finn said. “Why not?” Chewie nodded and used his datapad to sent a signal to R2, to activate the Falcon subsystems. Rey activated her lightsaber and got ready to act.

“Now,” Rey said and cut the lock with her lightsaber. The moment she did that, Chewie kicked the door and the trio exited the warehouse. Two stormtroopers to their left turned at the sound of the noise, surprised. Giving them no time to react, Chewie fired with his bowcaster and killed them both.

Three stormtroopers to their right turned to face them. Finn fired a burst against them, killing one of them and forcing the other two to duck for cover. The next second, both opened fire but Rey deflected their plasma bolts with her lightsaber.  
At the same time, R2 activated the Millennium Falcon subsystems, including the quad anti-aircraft guns.

“They are here,” Kylo Ren said when he heard the noises of combat. “Follow me,” he told his troops and activated his lightsaber.

Fifty meters away from the hangar, Chewie took cover and opened fire against the First Order troops. At the same time, Finn made a zigzag move towards him. Rey used her blaster to provide additional covering fire. When he reached Chewie, Finn opened fire with his rifle to cover Rey's movement who used her lightsaber to deflect some enemy fire.

Reinforcements were pouring from every direction. Soon they would surround them. At least six troops were standing in front of the hangar door and getting closer. The situation started to seem hopeless.

“Perhaps we had the wrong idea,” Finn said. The enemy fire was getting stronger. An enemy trooper carrying a rocket launcher approached and Finn fired an accurate burst against him, killing him. Unfortunately, another stormtrooper picked the launcher up and took cover behind a cement obstacle.

The six troopers were ready to open fire when suddenly …

… a burst of fire came from inside the hangar. R2 had activated the Falcon's weapons systems and concentrated their fire against the hangar front door. After a few seconds, the lock was gone and R2 kept firing until the door opened.  
Two of the six stormtroopers standing in front of the door were killed and the rest rushed for cover. R2 kept firing to pin down the enemies who were trying to flank Finn, Rey, and Chewie.

“Run to the Falcon,” Rey said. “I' ll cover you.” She stood up and used her lightsaber to deflect enemy fire, while Finn and Chewie entered the spaceship. Upon entering, Chewie manned the cockpit and Finn went to one of the forward anti-aircraft guns. Finn was an excellent gunner and his shots forced the enemy troops to take cover. Rey took advantage of Finn's accurate fire and entered the Falcon with the Artifact.

The moment Rey entered the Falcon, Chewie pressed a button and the spaceship ramp closed. A few seconds later, the Falcon started moving toward the hangar exit. Rey went to the second forward cannon and helped Finn keep the enemies at bay. A trooper holding a rocket launcher broke cover to open fire but Finn killed him before he had a chance to fire. The next second, Chewie activated the Falcon's energy shields, making the spaceship immune to small arms fire.

“OK,” Kylo Ren said in the intercom. “Launch TIE fighters, just in case. And remember, don't destroy the Millennium Falcon, just damage it.”

Holding his activated lightsaber with his right hand, Supreme Leader Ren and fifty stormtroopers approached the hangar. The Falcon had just exited it, ready to take off.

“Fire,” Kylo Ren ordered. His troops fired but the shots had no effect on the energy shields. Determined, he raised his left hand and concentrated really hard.

Chewie checked his instruments and made a worried sound.  
“Slowing down?” Rey asked. “No, it's not a mechanical failure. It's Kylo Ren. He is using the Force to stop us.”

They had to do something and do it quickly. If they let Kylo Ren continue, he would immobilize the Falcon, the rocket carrying troops would destroy it and the First Order would obtain the Artifact!

Rey concentrated really hard. She was a powerful Force user but unfortunately, so was Kylo Ren. Finn and Chewie could feel two opposing Forces pushing the Millennium Falcon, one forward and one backward.

Chewie tried to help Rey by pushing the throttles to the maximum but despite his best efforts the Falcon remained nearly motionless. Even worse, Finn could observe rocket carrying stormtroopers approaching. He opened fire, forcing them to take cover but the situation remained hopeless. It was only a matter of seconds before more of them approached.

To free the Falcon, they had to break Kylo Ren's connection with the Force and the best way to do that was by making him lose his concentration. An idea crossed Finn mind. He looked at Ren, took very careful aim, and opened fire.  
Finn was a very good shot and despite the distance, most projectiles fired were accurate. Most ordinary people faced with such a barrage of plasma bolts would be dead in an instant.

But Kylo Ren was not an ordinary man. He was a very powerful Force user and very skilled with a lightsaber. Although dozens of bolts reached him, he deflected them all. However, Finn's attack forced him to shift his concentration away from the Falcon, freeing it from his Force-grip.

Freed from Kylo Ren and assisted both by its powerful engines and Rey's Force push, the Falcon accelerated very fast. Within seconds, it was airborne and heading for space.

“Great job Finn!” Rey said, relieved.

Kylo Ren was disappointed. He had nearly captured them but they had run away. Fortunately, the First Order starfighters were a formidable opponent.  
“Attack the Millennium Falcon,” he ordered. “Damage it and capture it. Only destroy it as a last resort.”

Chewie suddenly made a sound.

“Enemy starfighters trying to surround us?” Rey asked. “Can't you jump to hyperspace to avoid them?” Chewie replied her.

“It will take some minutes? OK Chewie, we shall fight them.” Rey stood up and went to one of the rear anti-aircraft guns while Finn maintained his position as a forward gunner.

The first squadron of TIE fighters attacked less than a minute later. They started their attack firing missiles. However, Chewie easily evaded them forcing them to get closer and attack with their guns.

Two enemy starfighters managed to appear in front of the Falcon while others tried to flank it or attack from the rear. Finn opened fire, destroying one and forcing the other to retreat. At the same time, Rey fired upon three enemy TIE fighters making them scatter.

Another barrage of missiles followed. Once more, Chewie maneuvered the Falcon to evade. He succeeded, but only by making a very steep maneuver that nearly threw Finn and Rey out of their seats. A starfighter suddenly appeared in front of Rey's and Rey shot it down in an instant. Chewie growled.

“Two minutes for hyperspace?” Rey said. “OK, let's keep fighting.”

Things were looking bad. A second enemy squadron joined the fight. Finn and Rey kept firing but the enemy pilots had become more careful and started evading their fire. Chewie growled again.  
“One minute Chewie?” Rey said. “OK.”

Finn opened fire, destroying another enemy fighter. At the same time Chewie started zigzagging the Falcon to make them a harder target to hit.

The last minute passed very slowly. Both Finn and Rey were constantly firing, trying to keep the enemy at bay. They were successful but only barely so.

“Oh no,” Finn said. Eight enemy starfighters were in front of them, rapidly closing the distance. Even worse, all of them fired missiles. Even a legendary pilot like Chewie could not evade that. Finn looked at the missiles, slowly counting the seconds till they hit them.

“Chewie?” Rey said, worried. “Why don't you evade?” But Chewie did nothing.  
“Five seconds to impact,” Finn whispered. “Four. Three. Two...”

Suddenly, the Millennium Falcon jumped to hyperspace and the First Order missiles hit empty space. The threat was over.

“Hey, what happened?” Finn asked. “Why aren't we dead?” Chewie explained what had happened.

“You had timed our hyperspace jump to coincide with their attack,” Rey said. “They missed us for two seconds.”

“That was really close,” Finn said. “Well done Chewie.”

After checking the radar, Chewie informed Finn and Rey there were no enemies hunting them. For added security, Rey decided to check for herself: she opened her bag, removed the Artifact from it and concentrated on their Force-sensitive enemies.

“Kylo Ren and his four Knights of Ren,” Rey said. “Two of them are onboard the First Order flagship, one is in Ahch-To, and one more is in Coruscant along with Kylo Ren himself. They have missed us.”

“Good,” Finn said, ”let's search for transmitters and if we find none we go to headquarters.” Rey was surprised but Chewie gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder and explained Finn's rationale.

“So during the Galactic Civil war,” Rey said, “the Death Star captured the Millennium Falcon. When you escaped with Leia Organa, a hidden transmitter in the Falcon led the enemy to Yavin IV, where the main Rebel Alliance base was. The only reason you survived was because Luke Skywalker hit the exhaust port before its main turbolaser hit the base.”

“I heard the story in First Order infantry school,” Finn said. “But only the basics.” Rey looked at him, impressed, and gave him a kiss.

Two hours later, the search was over. No transmitters were hidden inside the Falcon and R2, the astromech droid, charted a course for the Resistance fleet. Their mission had been a success. Despite some close calls, the Artifact was theirs.


	21. Towards Shipyard Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo Ren visits Supremacy to talk to Hux and decide their course of action.
> 
> Poe, Amilyn, BB-8, Finn, Rey, Chewie, R2 reach the Resistance fleet and get ready to attack the Shipyard Four.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are no action sequences in this chapter. It is a breather chapter before the big battle that will be several chapters long.

Inside the Darth Vader throne room, Kylo Ren looked at Luke Skywalker's prosthetic hand, disappointed. His mission had failed. After so many weeks, he had nearly grabbed the Artifact from the Resistance, only for him to fail at the last second.

Kylo Ren threw Luke's hand in frustration. "So much time wasted! So much effort lost!"

Despite the setback, Kylo Ren was still Supreme Leader so he had to remain calm and view things objectively. Yes, the First Order had lost the Artifact but they were winning the war. It was only a matter of time before the Fleet Killer cannons and the hyperspace trackers were ready for deployment on a massive scale.

In addition, the purge he and Hux had initiated had ended in success. All senior competent – but of doubtful loyalty – officers had been replaced with loyalists. He and Hux had complete control of the First Order now.

Since the Artifact was gone, there was no reason for him to remain in Coruscant, so he ordered his battle group to reach Surpemacy.

"We have a lot to discuss Hux," he said.

“Commander,” Kylo Ren said the moment his capital ship group jumped from hyperspace. “Why are so many capital ships around our flagship?”

“I have no idea Supreme Leader,” the commanding officer of Vader replied.

“Strange indeed. Anyway, have my transport ready. I am going to Surpemacy.”

A few minutes later, Kylo Ren' transport, escorted by two squadrons of starfighters, reached the First Order flagship. Supreme Commander Hux and a honor guard of five hundred stormtroopers led by Captain Phasma were waiting for him.

“Present arms!” Phasma ordered the honor guard the moment Kylo Ren exited his transport.

After briefly saluting the honor guard, Kylo Ren walked towards Hux. He had no time to waste with ceremony.

“Welcome on board Supremacy Supreme Leader,” Hux said in an official tone and saluted him. “It is an honor and a pleasure to be with us today.”

“Thank you Supreme Commander,” Ren said, returning the salute. “There are matters of utmost importance … and confidentiality I am here to discuss,” Ren said, getting to the point.

“Of course, Supreme Leader.”

A few minutes later, the two men were alone inside the throne room.  
“For starters, why did you order all those capital ships around Supremacy?” Ren asked.

Hux explained Dameron's infiltration, Holdo's escape and the hyperspace driver sabotage. The capital ships were needed to keep Supremacy safe until repairs were complete.

“The hyperdrive will be ready in a couple of days,” Hux said. “And yes Ren, I know what you are going to say. Yes, we screwed up here. Security measures should have been better.”

Kylo Ren looked at Hux. The sabotage and the escape had happened on his watch. But could he blame Hux for that?

“I have punished the warden, the officer who allowed Dameron to enter Supremacy and I have strengthened security,” Hux said.

“It was not your fault Dameron and Holdo escaped,” Ren finally said. “I fared no better myself after all.”

Kylo Ren explained how his search for the Artifact had failed. He nearly had grabbed it in Coruscant but the Resistance had escaped in the Millennium Falcon with it.

“That's too bad,” Hux said. “At least, the factories that create Fleet Killer weapons and hyperspace trackers are working in full capacity.”

“How much time do we need till the systems are ready?” Ren asked.

“About three weeks,” Hux replied. “After that, the Galaxy is ours.”

“Very well,” Kylo Ren replied. “I am going to Shipyard Four now where my headquarters are. I'll supervise the factories. Come with Supremacy as soon as the hyperdrive is ready.” And with those words, he left for his transport.

The droid's bleep was too intense for Poe and Amilyn to ignore.

“Have we reached our destination Poe?” Amilyn asked.

Poe looked out the window. He recognized the two big freighter spaceships they were approaching. Both of them were donations to the Resistance. They were going to play a very important role in Poe's plan.

“Yes, we have Amilyn. These spaceships are ours,” Poe said. “We named the nearest one Kenobi and the other Ackbar.”

“A good way to honor their memory,” Amilyn said.

“That's right,” Poe said. “Alright, let's get dressed and let's approach Kenobi. Leia is waiting for us there.”

Two Resistance starfighters approached them. Amilyn noticed both of them were equipped with rotating turrets, something she pointed out to Poe.

“It's a modification for the upcoming battle,” Poe said. “We added an automatically reloading turret in every starfighter. They are operated by reprogrammed droids.” BB-8 gave a bleep.

“My buddy here,” Poe said when BB-8 bleeped, “will use the turret in my starfighter.”

After positively identifying Dameron and Holdo, the two starfighters escorted them to cruiser Ackbar. A few minutes later, Poe entered the main hangar and parked the spaceship in an empty spot.

Dozens of Resistance starfighters were in the hangar. Their pilots and technicians were constantly working on them, installing turrets, checking engines for mechanical trouble and examining guidance systems for malfunctions.

“OK,” Rey said, “here we go.” Two Resistance starfighters approached them. After positive identification, they were allowed to proceed to Ackbar.

Chewie maneuvered the Millennium Falcon and they docked to in an empty spot next to a First Order TIE fighter. That was something that Finn noticed.

“We use captured equipment now?” he asked. To his surprise, he saw Poe Dameron sitting on the pilot's seat and wearing an enemy uniform.

Poe Dameron, Amilyn Holdo, BB-8 the droid, Finn, Rey, Chewie and R2 exited their spaceships. They were all very happy to see each other.

“Welcome back safe buddy,” Finn said. “What did you do in an enemy uniform? Did you play spy games?”

“You know I am a 007 fan Finn,” Poe replied, smiling. “So I did my stuff: infiltration, freeing a Vice Admiral, sabotaging the enemy flagship, stealing an enemy TIE fighter. You know, the routine things.”

When Chewie saw his old friend Amilyn, he made an enthusiastic growl and run towards her. He hugged her and lifted her in the air like a doll.

“I am also happy to see you Chewie”, Amilyn said, full of enthusiasm herself. Chewie growled.

“No Chewie, I didn't gain weight. I've kept my weight steady for the past twenty years. Unless, you got weaker.” Chewie growled again.

“What do you mean you became weaker because you no longer eat my cookies?” she asked with a smile.

Leia Organa, Q, Rose Tico, and C-3PO the droid approached the two spaceships.  
“Welcome on board the Resistance cruiser Ackbar,” Leia said, a big smile on her face.

“Thank you Leia,” Amilyn said and hugged her. “I am so happy to see you, old friend.”

“Congratulations Admiral Dameron,” Leia said and hugged him as well. “You saved the Vice-Admiral and performed a high-quality act of sabotage.”

“Thank you General,” Poe said.

Leia's eyes fell on Chewie, Finn, and Rey.

“Congratulations, Rey, Finn, and Chewie. Obtaining the Artifact is a great success for the Resistance.”

“Thank you General,” Rey said. “It will help us rebuild the Jedi Order.”

“It will also help in the upcoming battle,” Poe said. “We shall incorporate the Artifact to our plans.”

“Of course Admiral,” Leia said. “OK everyone, we have a lot to discuss. Follow me.” Everyone did so except Poe and Amilyn who took a few minutes to change into Resistance uniforms first. A few minutes later, they too joined the others inside a small conference room next to the bridge.

“Alright everyone,” Leia said when C-3PO closed the door. “Time to start. Admiral Dameron?”

Poe Dameron was the first to talk. He described his mission to free Amilyn and sabotage the Supremacy hyperdrive. He included details such as the easiness he had bribing enemy officers and their escape in the trash compactor.

“Corruption appears to be a problem with the First Order,” Leia said. “Perhaps we can exploit that in the future. And I am glad you and the Vice Admiral didn't have to face a monster in that compactor. I have some bad memories about that.”

Rey was the second to talk. She described their search for the Artifact, the appearances of Luke's and Kenobi's Force Ghosts, the tests she had to pass and their adventures with the Jawas, the Coruscant criminals, and the First Order.

“That was a very hard achievement Rey,” Leia said. “Once more congratulations. OK now, we have celebrated the past, time to move to the future. Major Boothroyd and Sergeant Rose Tico have prepared a plan of action. Major, Sergeant?”

Major Boothroyd – aka Q – and Rose Tico stood up. Rose pressed a button and an image appeared on a big monitor on the wall. It was the map of Shipyard Four with the hyperspace tracker and FK cannon factories marked red, and the enemy headquarters marked black.

According to the map, there were three layers of defense in Shipyard Four. The outer layer consisted of heavy infantry, artillery, and walkers. The intermediate one had the enemy airfields and the shield generators. Finally, the inner one was where the headquarters building and military factories where.

“The conventional approach,” Rose said, “would be to land outside the outer layer and fight our way to the factories. That's impossible. For starters, their infantry units outnumber ours at least two hundred to one. In addition, we have very few anti-armor weapons. We won't be able to stop a massive walker counterattack.”

“Moreover,” Q said, “they are protected by very powerful energy shields. Our starfighters cannot penetrate them. Even if we somehow managed to do that, they have forty airfields with two thousand enemy starfighters, ready to launch within minutes.”

“For that reason, we have developed another approach,” Rose said, “based on Admiral Dameron's ideas. We believe it's the only feasible one.” Q and Rose spent the next minutes analyzing it. As expected, there were some questions.

“We encountered a lot of troopers with rocket launchers in Coruscant,” Rey said.

“What if there are many such troops there? They will destroy us.”

“That's hardly possible,” Q said. “Only elite units have such a high percentage of rocket carriers. Don't expect to see a lot of them down there.”

“How so?” Rey asked.

“Imagine the average First Order officer,” Q replied. “They mistreat their troops, especially the senior ones. Am I right Finn?” Finn nodded in agreement.

“For security and prestige, their senior officers travel in armored ground or aerial vehicles,” Q continued. “Let's say a stormtrooper has one mistreatment too many, mutinies and opens fire upon such a vehicle with his rifle. What happens?   
Nothing. But what if that trooper had a rocket launcher?”

“You are right,” Rey said. “Only loyal troops can be entrusted with them. But we should be careful. Our plan hinges on Kylo Ren being in Shipyard Four. That means his bodyguard will be there as well. We fought against them in Coruscant and they were really good. To give you an example: Finn shot a stormtrooper with a rocket launcher and immediately another one picked it up and kept fighting.”

“Yes, picking up a dead soldier's launcher is something only someone with calmness, quick reflexes and competence would do,” Q admitted. “Don't worry though Rose. Our troops will be ready for them.”

There were no more questions so Q and Rose described everyone's duties according to the plan. General Leia Organa would be onboard cruiser Kenobi with her droid C-3PO. She would coordinate space operations, trying to keep the capital ships orbiting Shipyard Four occupied.

Admiral Dameron would command all aerial and ground forces on the planet. The starfighters would be under his direct command, while direct control of the transports and the ground troops would be delegated to Holdo. Rose Tico would accompany the latter as her personal aide.

“You will have one hundred transports under your command Admiral,” Rose continued. “Each one is equipped with a rotating gun turret and will carry a platoon of Resistance troops.”

“We are going to attack two targets at the same time,” Q said. Most troops would surround the first target. Q would lead the best Resistance troops to neutralize the second one.

Finn, Rey, Chewie, and R2 also had an important role to play in the upcoming battle. They gladly agreed to join Q in his attack when he informed them about the requirements.

“The Millennium Falcon will spearhead the attack,” Q said. “A platoon of my best troops will travel with it. You are of course more than welcome to officially join it.” Finn, Rey, and Chewie gladly accepted the offer.

“All is set then,” Leia said. “The plan is ready, the troops are ready, the spaceships are ready. May the Force be with us.”

Poe Dameron was not joking when he suggested incorporating the Artifact to their plans. Using it, they could determine the location of the enemy Supreme Leader and the Knights of Ren.

“I can see two Knights of Ren in the area you sabotaged Supremacy,” Rey told Poe. “Kylo Ren and the other two Knights are on Shipyard Four.” She didn't say one of the Knights had previously been in Ahch-To, meaning the inhabitants there were probably dead by now.

“Good,” Poe said. “The Knights of Ren on Supremacy will act as tracking devices for us. Using the Artifact, we will know when their flagship will be on our backs.”  
“We can also use the Artifact to pinpoint where the two Knights of Ren on the ground will be,” Amilyn said. “We can then bomb the hell out of them.”

“It won't be as elegant as a lightsaber duel,” Rey said, “but I admit it will be effective.”

Inside Ackbar, Poe Dameron and Amilyn Holdo looked BB-8 the droid. Rose had removed the black paint, restoring him to his original color.

“How do you feel now buddy? You are back to normal,” Poe asked. BB-8 gave him an enthusiastic bleep.

“You are more handsome now BB-8,” Amilyn said.

Poe looked at Amilyn. “It will be tough down there. But I have full confidence in you.”

“You will always fly above me to protect me,” she said. They shared a soft kiss on the lips.

“OK Admiral,” Poe said. “Let's get to work.”


	22. The Resistance attack begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Resistance appear above Shipyard Four and launch their attack. There are many obstacles they have to deal with.

A few hours later, the two Resistance spaceships jumped from hyperspace above the planet where Shipyard Four was. Ackbar headed straight for the enemy energy shield while Kenobi with Leia Organa remained in a distance, using cloaked technology to avoid radar observation.

Cruiser Ackbar contained the first wave of attack: a hundred starfighters and a hundred transports. Each starfighter had a pilot and a droid that operated a rotating gun turret. Each transport carried a platoon of twenty-five troopers with their equipment and a three-member crew consisting of a pilot, a co-pilot, and a gunner operating a rotating defensive turret.

Admiral Poe Dameron was among the starfighter pilots who would attack. He would have a lot of things to do during the following hours: have the overall command of the attack, coordinate with ground troops who would be hard pressed against vastly superior enemy forces and personally lead his starfighter squadron where immediate assistance was required. Fortunately, Vice Admiral Holdo, his second in command, was someone he fully trusted.

Inside the hangar bay, Amilyn checked her rifle and her datapad. Satisfied, she put the datapad back in her pocket and looked around her. Many troopers were outside their transports, chatting and trying to steel their nerves for the coming battle. She gave some encouraging words here and there and tried to calm some nervous men and women. She knew that when you are a leader, you have to help your troops maintain their morale.

As soon as her brief tour inside the hangar was over, Amilyn put her helmet on and ordered everyone to enter their transports. After checking everyone had complied with her order, she saluted Admiral Dameron and entered her transport as well.

After saluting Vice Admiral Holdo, Poe Dameron entered his starfighter and ordered the pilots to close their spaceship canopies. A few seconds later his personal droid bleeped, informing him everyone was ready.

Poe Dameron checked his datapad. There was a message from Leia Organa who had remained in the cloaked cruiser Kenobi. The twenty capital ships patrolling the skies above the enemy shipyard had located them and had sent starfighters to intercept them.

"Everything is going according to plan buddy," Poe said. So far, the enemy was reacting in the way he had anticipated.

Inside his headquarters, Kylo Ren observed the big radar screen in front of him. He could see the strong radar signal the Resistance capital ship left. (He could not see the second capital ship carrying his mother because it was still cloaked).

"What do we have here?" he asked.

"A enemy capital ship is approaching Supreme Leader," the radar officer replied.  
"If they continue like that, they will crash on our energy shields."

"They might penetrate them," the officer said. "Our shields are very strong but the capital ship might be too big for them. They will slow it down but the debris will still cause damage. And they appear to head for our main shipyards."

Kylo Ren was a bit shocked. Where had the enemy found such a gigantic spaceship? But most important of all: what should he do?

Should he order the orbiting capital ships to open fire? No, it would take them minutes to get into position and many more minutes of concentrated fire to do significant damage. Only the starfighters would be there in time but their firepower was too weak to do any damage.

"How soon can the energy cannon fire?" Kylo Ren finally asked.

"In a few minutes Supreme Leader."

"Do it."

War is based on deception. If we are strong we need to appear weak. If we are weak, we need to appear strong. That was exactly the principle the Resistance used for the battle.

The Resistance capital ship was just a big merchant spaceship, externally disguised to look like a heavy cruiser. It had to appear intimidating and emit a big radar signal to confuse the enemy and entice them to use their energy cannon. 

And there was a very specific reason for that...

Inside the Millennium Falcon, Chewie activated its engines and slowly piloted it outside the hangar. With delicate maneuvers, the wookie placed the Falcon next to the capital ship, close enough to confuse the enemy radar observers about its exit. Within minutes, the rest of the transports and the starfighters exited the hangar, remaining close to cruiser Ackbar as well. They would move away from the capital ships, the moment Dameron gave the signal.

Inside the Falcon, Rey used the Artifact and concentrated for a few seconds. When she opened her eyes, she had the answer she wanted.

"Kylo Ren and two Knights of Ren are down there. Supremacy is still away." Q, sitting next to her, radioed the message to Leia, Poe, and Amilyn.

To Rey's amazement, the Artifact revealed another powerful Force user nearby. That person was inside the other Resistance cruiser.

"General Organa?" Rey whispered. "What kept your Force powers locked for so many decades?"

Inside cruiser Kenobi, C-3PO approached Leia Organa with the message Rey had sent. Tears fell from Leia's eyes.

"My son is down there. And I am his enemy." C-3PO, Leia's personal droid, tried to comfort her.

"My mind agrees with every single idea Dameron has. But my heart is still bleeding."

"Is this why you let him take charge of the attack?" the droid asked.

"Yes, but there is another one," she admitted. "I call myself a General but Poe Dameron knows more about strategy than I do. Let's face it. I am mostly a diplomat. I would never come with such a plan in a thousand years."

"But you still have a vital role to play General," C-3PO said.

"True," Leia replied. "The hardest role of my life."

"The energy cannon is ready Supreme Leader," an officer said.

"Fire!" Kylo Ren ordered.

A deadly energy projectile left the cannon. It was a 'fleet-killer' one, strong enough to destroy an armada of capital ships if they were packed closely. It was only a matter of seconds before it reached cruiser Ackbar and blew it up.

The moment Dameron saw the approaching projectile, he ordered the starfighters and the transports to immediately move away from Ackbar. They had to get away or the massive energy projectile would disintegrate them.

The transports and the starfighters increased speed and performed sharp turns to the left or right. It was only a matter of seconds now. Would the starfighters survive? Would the much slower and much less maneuverable transports make it?

The energy projectile reached its target, disintegrating Ackbar. However, the maneuver was a success. Not a single Resistance spaceship was lost.

"We made it," Finn said, checking his helmet, his bulletproof vest and his rifle. "The energy cannon missed us."

"All right lads," Q said addressing his platoon that included Rey, Finn, and Chewie. "We are the tip of the sword. We will be the first to attack. Rey?"

"Yes Major?" she asked.

"You are a Jedi. You are our most important member."

"I won't let you down," she said looking at the other twenty-four members of the platoon.

"OK lads," Q said, "we are approaching the enemy shield. Get ready!"

Apart from their ability to deal massive damage, energy projectiles have two additional characteristics. The first one is that their energy pulse confuses radar signals. The second is that they emit an electromagnetic pulse that short-circuits energy shields.

As Dameron and every experienced military officer knows, every military technology is a two-edged sword. The same things that help you can also help your enemies. The ability to short-circuit energy shields is very useful when you fire upon enemy capital ships and want to neutralize their defenses. But what happens when your own energy shields get short-circuited in the process?

Poe Dameron had anticipated the First Order would use their energy cannon and had planned accordingly. At his signal, all transports and eighty of the starfighters rushed towards the enemy shields at full speed, hoping they would pass them before they were reactivated. The twenty remaining starfighters, led by Dameron himself, moved to another direction and waited in ambush.

Hopefully, the enemy radars were still inactive due to the energy projectile. That would allow the Resistance spaceships to land before the aerial and ground units on the planet were alerted.

"Will we make it? Will we pass the shields in time?" Rose asked. Amilyn Holdo looked at her. She fully trusted Poe Dameron but she had to admit the margin for error was very small. If they were just a few seconds late and crashed on the shields, they would all die in an instant.

"Yes we will," she replied in a confident tone. Rose immediately calmed down. A reassuring word from a war hero always improves morale.

"We are under attack," another trooper said.

"We had expected that," the Vice Admiral said. "To all turret gunners! Open fire!"

The twenty capital ships patrolling the skies above Shipyard Four were not the only space defense the First Order had. Inside their hangars, a thousand starfighteres were located. At any given time, fifty of them were patrolling and the rest were ready to be deployed whenever Supreme Commander Ren gave the order.

The moment the fifty enemy starfighters noticed the Resistance spaceships moving, they rushed to intercept them. However, the Resistance had anticipated that.

"Maintain formation!" Holdo ordered.

It was crucial for the transports to remain in formation for maximum covering fire against starfighters. It was equally crucial not to zigzag or turn to face the enemy because that would cost them time and the energy shields would be reactivated before they passed them.

Fortunately, they had gotten the enemy by surprise. That was why only fifty starfighters had attacked them instead of a thousand.

A hundred transports and eighty Resistance starfighters opened fire against the First Order starfighters with their turrets, keeping their attack disorganized and harmless and shooting two of them down. But the enemy would soon return for a more organized second pass.

The remaining forty-eight First Order starfighters regrouped for a second attack. Unfortunately for them, the twenty Resistance starfighters led by Poe Dameron ambushed them. Dameron himself shot down three and the rest of his squadron an additional twenty-five. The surviving TIE fighters rushed to evade the unexpected attackers in many directions.

Amilyn Holdo checked her datapad. They were only ten seconds away from the shields. Were the energy shields still inactive? Would they survive or would they crash upon them?

"Ten, nine, ..."

"... five, four, three, ..."

"We did it!" Rose shouted full of enthusiasm. "We passed the energy shield."

"Yes," Amilyn said, holding her right hand like a fist. Poe was right. His plan had worked.

"OK Rose," Amilyn said. "Send the message to General Organa."

Inside cruiser Kenobi, C-3PO approached Leia Organa.

"It is from Vice Admiral Holdo," the droid said. "They passed the shields."

"That's great news," Leia said. "Our plan works. Alright, launch the second wave of starfighters."

"Supreme Leader," an officer said, sounding alarmed. "They have penetrated our shields."

"What?" Kylo Ren said. "But how? The radar shows nothing." It took him a few seconds to remember about the radar-neutralizing properties of energy pulse weapons.

"OK Dameron," Ren said, "you have won the first round. But the game has just started." He looked around him. His officers were waiting for his orders.

"All units," Kylo Ren said, "red alert status. All mechanized walkers, stormtroopers, and aircraft to be launched immediately. All spaceships in orbit to immediately launch all of their starfighters."

After the shields, the biggest obstacle the Resistance attackers were to face were the enemy aerial forces. There were two thousand enemy starfighters, evenly distributed in forty airfields with two runways each. It was impossible for the two hundred Resistance starfighters to shoot them down if they took off. Fortunately, there was another method to neutralize them.

What is the easiest way to neutralize an enemy starfighter? You prevent if from taking off. How do you do that? You either hit it while it is still on the ground or you bomb the runway to make it unable to take off.

In all, there were two thousand enemy fighters and eighty runways. Making a ground attack against two thousand individual fighters would require many times the starfighters the Resistance had and would cause heavy losses due to enemy anti-aircraft fire.

On the other hand, neutralizing the runways for a few hours only required eighty well placed bombs and most Resistance starfighters were armed accordingly. Although Kylo Ren had ordered his starfighters to take off, it would take some minutes till they were ready, minutes the Resistance would fully exploit.

Moving in pairs, the Resistance starfighters dropped one or more bombs to each runway, taking the First Order completely by surprise. In many airfields, the enemy starfighters were less than a minute away from taking off when the bombs fell. Despite some losses due to antiaircraft fire, the Resistance completely neutralized the enemy airfields.

The only First Order fighters that fought against the Resistance were fifty TIE fighters already in the air, patrolling various areas of Shipyard Four. However, the combination of numerical superiority for the Resistance – eighty against fifty – and the gun turrets the Resistance fighters had, that allowed them to shoot enemies approaching from behind, worked against them.

A few minutes later, all the First Order fighters were either shot down or unable to take off due to damaged runways. The sixty Resistance fighters that survived the enemy aerial and anti-aircraft units concentrated their fire against the two targets the Resistance ground troops were to attack.

At the same time, the Resistance transports descended on the planet surface. Fortunately, no aerial units attacked them because the Resistance starfighters had been very effective in neutralizing them.

There was no way to evade the enemy anti-aircraft fire though. They could only hope there were few such weapons in the landing zones and that the Resistance starfighters had neutralized some of them.

The transports dropped flares and chaff at prearranged heights to confuse the launched missiles. In addition, they maneuvered to evade anti-aircraft fire.

The relative inexperience of the First Order anti-aircraft crews, the fact that most anti-aircraft weaponry were in the outer perimeter to protect against attacks there, the assistance of starfighters, and the advantage of speed and confusion helped the Resistance. Out of the one hundred transports, only five were lost to enemy fire.

Holdo's transport was one of the first to touch the ground. It landed on a hill overlooking both Resistance objectives: a huge building housing a powerful shield generator and an airfield they wanted to capture.

The Resistance transports landed around both objectives and surrounded them. The troops exited the transports and took defensive positions around the objectives, both to isolate them and to prevent enemy reinforcements from interfering.

There was a trench surrounding the enemy airfield. The moment the Resistance transports landed, stormtroopers rushed to occupy it. The turret gunners and the disembarked infantry opened fire upon them but it was filled with enemy stormtroopers anyway.

"So far we go according to plan Admiral," Rose Tico told Holdo. "The enemy trench is full, as we expected it to be."

"I agree," Amilyn replied. "Any news from Q?"

Braving anti-aircraft fire, the Millennium Falcon and twenty transports – a fifth of the attack force – landed close to the energy shield generator. As soon as they landed, Chewie opened the ramp and Q's group exited the legendary spaceship  
.  
"Alright lads," Q said. "We are here to kick ass and chew bubblegum. Rey?" he asked. "Do we have bubblegum?"

"No, Major," she replied with a crooked smile.

"OK, then. Let's kick ass! Lead the way Rey." Rey turned her lightsaber on and started marching towards the generator.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea for hitting runways to neutralize the aircraft trying to use them came from the Six-Day War. During that war, the Israeli Air Force neutralized the Egyptian Air Force by hitting the runways. It is a classic way to neutralize an enemy air Force.


	23. The Second Wave attacks.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poe Dameron leads the second wave of starfighers against the First Order energy shield. 
> 
> Rey, Finn, Chewie, Q, and R2 have to capture the energy shield generator in time to allow the Resistance fighters to proceed.

Kylo Ren looked at the big digital map in front of him. As he could see, the Resistance starfighters had knocked out all First Order airfields. In addition, their ground troops had surrounded a damaged airfield and a shield generator.

In addition, Resistance reinforcements were on their way. The First Order radars had located multiple groups of starfighters approaching their energy shield.

Since all runways were out of action, the TIE fighters stationed there were useless till they were repaired. Only ground troops could eradicate the enemy bridgehead.

Unfortunately, the heavy ground units most capable of counterattacking such as walkers and artillery were located in the outer defensive layer. (Officially, the reason for that had been to defend from an attack outside the perimeter. Unofficially, the further away heavily armored units were, the more time Kylo Ren had to stop them if they mutinied.)

Nobody had anticipated the Resistance would bypass their outer layer of defenses by landing directly in the inner one...

"How soon can our walkers be there?" Ren asked. The officer told him.

"That late? Deploy them anyway," Ren ordered.

There was another tough question for Kylo Ren. If he used the energy cannon again, he could destroy most of the second wave of attackers. However, that would short-circuit the shields again, allowing the surviving enemies to pass through them. If a few dozens of starfighters had caused so much damage, what would double or triple their number do?

In the end, the Resistance solved the dilemma for him: they bombed the cannon knocking it out of action for two hours.

With no other option left, Kylo Ren ordered the orbiting starfighers to attack. The First Order had a huge advantage there: almost one thousand of them against about a hundred Resistance starfighters.

"What are you going to do now Poe Dameron?" Kylo Ren asked while his starfighters approached the second wave from all directions.

Inside his starfighter, Poe Dameron checked his radar. Almost all enemy starfighters were converging to their position. He immediately gave the order for all Resistance spaceships to head for a specific area in the enemy energy shields.

Almost all enemy fighters were behind them now and getting closer each passing second. That was to be expected: the Resistance starfighers had additional weight due to extra armor and the addition of turrets.

It all depended on the ground troops now. Would they neutralize the energy shield generator in time? Or would the second wave crush and burn on them?

The turret guns from the transports were fired against approaching enemies, isolating the energy shield defenders. In addition, Q ordered snipers from the transports to harass the defenders and give his platoon all the support they could provide.

"We only have a few minutes," Q said. Rey nodded and rushed to the enemy position. The rest of the platoon followed her, including two troopers carrying rocket launchers and three snipers who took cover and waited for the enemy fire to start.

Two machine gun positions opened fire on Rey. At the same time, a number of snipers on the roof of the energy shield building took careful aim at her and opened fire. All attacks were pointless though because Rey deflected all incoming fire.

The moment the enemy snipers opened fire, they exposed themselves, allowing the three Resistance snipers to kill them. At the same time, the rocket launcher troops fired rockets against the machine gun positions killing their crews on the spot.

"All right," Q said. "Follow me." The rocket launcher troops and the snipers rushed to Q's position while Rey and Finn kept moving towards the enemy. The rest of the platoon followed suit. A First Order trooper suddenly appeared from behind a tree, only for Q to shoot within a fraction of a second.

They were about a hundred meters from the building door now. The door was very sturdy, capable of withstanding bullet and grenade fire. In addition, there were two hidden machine gun nests on the left and the right of it, capable of firing thousands of projectiles per minute. Their fire was so strong and so accurate, that even Rey had to duck for cover.

"Rocket troops!" Q ordered. "Nail the bastards!"

The rocket troops immediately obeyed Q's order and loaded their launchers with armor piercing rockets. Using the installed scopes and laser rangefinders on the launchers, they carefully aimed for the holes in the walls where the machine guns were. Taking careful aim, they fired two rockets and blasted them.

"Good!" Q said. "Let's go." Rey continued attacking and using her lightsaber to deflect attacks, the snipers kept killing individual enemy troops and the rest of the platoon reached the building door.

Q looked at Rey. Rey smiled and started cutting a big hole on the door using her lightsaber. Q looked at his watch. They still had time for Dameron and the second wave but not much. Would they make it? Fortunately, the enemies inside the building were mostly lightly armed technicians.

A few seconds later, Chewie approached them. He was carrying his bowcaster in his arms and R2 the droid strapped on his back. He had stayed out of combat until then to keep R2 safe because the droid was the key for the success of the whole operation.

In a swift motion, Chewie put R2 on the ground and kicked the door. The door fell with a bang. A couple of stormtroopers approached but Chewie killed them both with his bowcaster. Rey turned her lightsaber on again and entered the building. Finn and Chewie accompanied her. The rest of the platoon followed.

Inside his starfighter, Poe Dameron checked the time. In less than four minutes they would either hit the energy shield and die or survive and join their people already fighting on the ground.

"Come on Finn," he said. "I depend on you." Finn hadn't let him down during the Starkiller Base attack. He was certain he wouldn't let him down now.

The First Order officer in charge of the shield generator drew his blaster pistol and opened fire, killing one Resistance trooper. In addition, he ordered two stormtroopers to cover his retreat while he locked himself in the main control room.

The two stormtroopers opened fire but Rey deflected their shots. Finn and Chewie shot and killed them. Only a locked door and an enemy officer remained between them and the shield generator console.

Q looked at the door. It was very strong and heavy. Rey could use her lightsaber to open it but it would take too much time.

"Can you convince him to surrender?" Q asked Rey. Rey nodded and closed her eyes. Using the Force, she connected with the officer's mind.

"You don't want to fight," she said, concentrating on the officer's mind. "You want to open the door and surrender."

For a few seconds nothing happened. But suddenly, they heard the sound of the door unlocking. Four seconds later, the officer opened the door and exited the console room with his arms raised. Finn and Chewie arrested him on the spot.

"All right R2," Q said. "Do your magic!"

The droid bleeped and entered the console room. There were less than three minutes left to hack the system and deactivate the shields. Would R2 make it on time? With increasing agony, Q, Finn, Rey, and Chewie observed the droid while it tried to bypass the security systems.

The minutes and the seconds passed. Two minutes, one minute, half a minute, twenty seconds, nine, eight, ...

"... seven, six, four, ..." Amilyn said checking her datapad. "Come on Poe," she whispered.

"... three, two, one ..." Dameron said. Instinctively he closed his eyes.

"... zero, one, two, three, ..." Finn said. "Did we make it?" he asked.

Q checked the console. "There is no way to know," he said. "Only if Dameron contacts us, we will know for certain."

A few more seconds passed. Suddenly ...

Q's radio suddenly came to life. Someone was talking but there was too much static to correctly identify him.

"Is Q there?" the voice said.

"Who is there?" Q asked.

"The name is Bond. James Bond!" Q burst into laughter. It was Poe Dameron, using his code name. He had made it!

It had been a very narrow thing. If R2 had been just a few seconds late, the shield would still be up and the second wave would crash and burn. Fortunately, it all worked perfectly and all starfighters, except three lost to enemy fire, passed through the deactivated shields.

There were more than nine hundred enemy TIE fighters chasing them. As Dameron observed, they kept chasing, believing the shields were still inactive.

"It all goes as planned buddy," Poe told his droid. The next second he contacted Q again.

"OK Q, turn the lights on."

"But of course 007," Q replied and looked at R2.

The enemy starfighters chasing the second wave kept going, believing the shields were still down. Unfortunately for them, the moment Dameron ordered 'the lights on', R2 let the shields become active again.

It was too late for the First Order fighters to do anything. The first two hundred of them fell upon the shield crashing and burning without even realizing it. Within seconds, the rest of the enemy formation had the same fate. Less than twenty starfighters managed to turn in time and avoid destruction.

In all, less than sixty First Order starfighters survived. To keep them and the capital ships busy, twenty Resistance launched from cruiser Kenobi and started feigning attacks against them.

Meanwhile, Resistance starfighters started patrolling the area around the bridgehead to attack approaching infantry, while the rest of them attacked the surrounded airfield in order to neutralize its anti-air defenses. One by one, the enemy anti-aircraft missile batteries and the enemy anti-aircraft artillery were blown up.

Inside his headquarters, Kylo Ren was furious. He almost Force-choked one of his officers.

"Dameron, you clever bastard," he murmured. In two swift motions, Dameron had neutralized all of his aerial forces allowing the Resistance starfighters to keep the First Order infantry at bay.

On the other hand, what could the Resistance do? They had landed away from the main shipyards and his troops had encircled them. The enemy had achieved aerial superiority but they would soon run out of fuel and his airfields would soon be repaired. His aircraft still outnumbered the enemy ten to one and his ground troops at least two hundred to one. When his planes took off, they would smash the Resistance for good.

Unless of course ...


	24. To the heart of the enemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Resistance focus on their next part of the plan: capturing the enemy airfield and attacking Kylo Ren.

Inside the captured shield generator building, Q, Finn, Rey, Chewie, R2 and the rest of the platoon were busy planting explosives. They used the same type Dameron had in his sabotage against Supremacy.

"There are enough explosives here to knock it out for a month," Finn said. Q nodded.

"Explosives are my expertise," he said. "Have you placed them all?"

"Yes, we have," Finn said. A burst of fire cut the conversation short.

Upon hearing the shots, Q and his platoon rushed to the building exit. Thousands of enemy infantry had gathered outside the perimeter the Resistance transports had established, trying to breach it. The gun turret crews opened fire upon the enemy and the five hundred troopers who had taken part in the attack took cover and returned fire.

"This is Q," he said on the radio. "We need aerial support to evacuate."

"I can't give you that yet," Vice Admiral Holdo replied. "There are no starfighters available."

"Roger that," Q said. "All troops," he ordered through the radio, "fire at will!"

The Resistance could not provide aerial support to Q and his battalion because they had committed everything for the next phase in Dameron's plan: capturing the enemy airfield.

The sixty remaining Resistance starfighters, that had bombed the enemy runways, approached from a medium height. They no longer carried bombs, which made them lighter and faster. Their mission was to draw enemy fire while a second group, led by Admiral Dameron himself, would take advantage of the confusion to destroy the enemy anti-air defenses.

As the Resistance had anticipated, almost all anti-aircraft guns and missile batteries focused their fire on the sixty starfighters, managing to shoot down two of them. But while they were busy, ten waves of ten Resistance starfighters each, used the confusion to attack. Using air-to-ground missiles, they destroyed all First Order anti-aircraft guns and missile batteries in the airfield.

"Enemy anti-air neutralized," Dameron said. "Proceed to the next step."

"Very well 007," Vice Admiral Holdo said.

"Q," she said on the radio, "what's your status?"

"We are still pinned down," Q replied, "we need aerial support to evacuate."

Amilyn relayed the message to Dameron.

"Roger that," Poe replied. He and two squadrons of starfighters left to help Q.

The two squadrons of Resistance starfighters strafed the attacking stormtroopers, killing a number of them and forcing the rest to duck for cover and break their attack. Afterwards, Dameron ordered his starfighters to move in a wide circle around the Resistance transports and use their turret guns to strafe the enemy stormtrooper positions. They would not hit many enemies that way but the logic was to keep them pinned down until Q's battalion entered the transports.

"Let's go lads," Q ordered from the radio. All Resistance troops – except the fifteen who had been killed in action – entered the transports. Two minutes later, they took off with the Millennium Falcon the last to leave the area.

When the Falcon took off, Q pressed a button on his datapad. Two seconds later, a big explosion rocked the shield generator building. Five seconds later, the big transmitter dish that powered the energy shield fell to the ground, completely destroyed.

"We did it lads," Q said. There was no cheering mood in his platoon though: two of its members had lost their lives in combat.

"I know we are all sad here," Q said, "but the battle is far from over. There is still an airfield to capture."

Under the command of Vice Admiral Holdo, Resistance troops had encircled the airfield and had repulsed all enemy counterattacks. But they could not penetrate its defenses. The ten kilometer trench surrounding it was impossible to pass. A regiment of two thousand stormtroopers was inside it and their fire caused a lot of casualties for the Resistance.

The only way to capture the airfield was by bypassing the trench and the only way to do that was by using their transports to land troops inside the enemy perimeter. But as long as the enemy anti-aircraft guns remained active, Holdo could not order her troops to make such an attack. The enemy guns and missiles could easily shoot the transports, killing everyone.

But as a saying goes, the obstacle is the way. The same trench that prevented the Resistance from attacking also prevented the enemy troops inside it from moving because that would expose them to Resistance ground fire. The moment Dameron's coordinated aerial attack destroyed all anti-air weapons, nothing could prevent Q's group from landing inside the enemy perimeter and seize the airport.

"How is the situation down there?" Q asked Holdo on the radio.

"We are between two fronts and we are running out of fuel and ammo," came the reply.

That was unavoidable, Q thought. The Resistance troops had to constantly fire against their enemies to keep them pinned down. In addition, the landed transports still had to spend a lot of energy to keep their defensive shields active. 

"Get ready to order an attack on the southern trench," Q said.

"OK Q," Holdo said and ordered increased fire in that area.

"Transports One to Fourteen," Q said on the radio, "land a hundred meters behind the southern trench. Turret gunners, suppressing fire. Troopers, get close and ask the enemies to surrender. If they do, take them prisoners. If not, drop grenades." Within one minute, Q's order had been obeyed.

The stormtroopers inside the isolated part of the trench were in big trouble. Their strong defensive position had suddenly become a trap. No matter whether they fought or not, the Resistance would occupy their positions. Realizing it was all pointless, they settled for the lesser of two evils and opted to surrender.

Within minutes, a part of the trench about a kilometer long had been cleared. On Holdo's orders, five hundred Resistance troops advanced to help secure the prisoners and attack other parts of the enemy defensive perimeter.

Meanwhile, the Millennium Falcon and six transports landed close to the main airfield buildings. The troops inside them disembarked and rushed to secure the enemy fuel and ammunition depots.

Q's platoon advanced to the main building. Once more Rey led the way and used her lightsaber to deflect enemy fire. Soon, they had neutralized all enemy defenders and were in front of the armored entrance of the command center. The enemy base commander and some of his officers were hidden there.

"This is Major Boothroyd from the Resistance," Q said looking at a camera. "Open the door or we will blow it up." Nothing happened.

Q gestured for his two rocket launcher troops to proceed in front of the camera and load their weapons there, to put some psychological pressure to the enemy commander.

"On the count to five," Q said, "fire at the door! One ... two ... three ... four ..."

Suddenly, the door opened and a number of troopers and officers exited the bunker with their hands up. Q's platoon arrested them on the spot.

Meanwhile, the enemy resistance in the airfield collapsed. Realizing they were between two fronts, the First Order stormtroopers still inside the trench raised their arms in surrender. The Resistance troops took their weapons and marched them in the area between the two runways. There, they divided them into two groups, one containing enemy pilots and officers and a bigger one containing the rest.

Poe Dameron was delighted. Another part of his plan had worked perfectly.

"Great job Mrs. Trench. Your troops have made it," Poe said from his starfighter.

"Thank you Mr. Bond," Amilyn said. "But we would't have made it without you."

"How did that happen?" Supreme Leader Ren asked. "How did they destroy our shield generator and capture our airfield?" None dared to speak.

These damned purges, Kylo Ren thought. They were necessary to prevent coups and mutinies but whenever something unexpected happened nobody would take the initiative to fix it. For instance, the airfield commander should have blown his fuel and ammo reserves the moment enemy transports landed inside his perimeter. But he hadn't and now the Resistance could refuel and rearm ... using captured First Order resources!

Seeing that nobody was willing to speak up Kylo Ren looked around the room, focused on one of the officers and pointed his finger on him.

"Major," Kylo Ren said, "why aren't we sending transports to attack the airfield like they did to us?"

The Major took a deep breath. "They have bombed all of our runways Supreme Leader so we cannot launch aircraft to provide aerial support to our transports. If our transports go alone, their starfighters will shoot them down before they get close."

"How about conventional infantry on foot?"

"Their starfighters are constantly strafing the area around the airfield. They have neutralized all of our counterattacks and have caused hundreds of casualties. I also expect they will barricade themselves in the trench surrounding it to strengthen their position. I also expect they will use their transports with their gun turrets for additional firepower. I am afraid conventional infantry can no longer harm them."

"How can we harm them Major?" Kylo Ren was furious.

"Only heavy walkers can harm them Supreme Leader," the Major replied. "But almost all of them are stationed in our outer defensive perimeter. We have ordered some of them to move. We expect them to be here soon."

As if on cue, the ground around the headquarters building shook. Thirty heavy walkers in two groups of fifteen were outside. Kylo Ren looked at the two Knights of Ren present in the room. Both of them nodded and headed outside to lead the two groups.

"Anything else I should know?" Kylo Ren asked. A young lieutenant reluctantly raised his hand. Ren nodded for him to talk.

"Our troops report that one of the enemies in the shield generator was a woman ... carrying a lightsaber."

Kylo Ren was shocked. Rey?

To better protect the captured airfield, Poe Dameron had ordered a group of starfighters with air-to-ground missiles to patrol in a wide circle around it. He was leading that group, when suddenly BB-8 bleeped.

"What is it buddy?" he said looking at the ground, only to see two groups of fifteen heavy walkers each advancing towards the airfield.

Poe looked at the walkers. His starfighter group could easily knock two or three of them out and the Resistance had enough troops with rocket launchers to finish the rest. But until the last of the enemy walkers was gone, hundreds of troops would be dead and dozens of their landed spaceships would be gone. A second First Order attack would easily finish them off.

Poe made a quick thought. After Hux's and Ren's purges, the First Order troops had become too reluctant to take initiative. Moreover, the heavy walker attack was critical for the enemy and Kylo Ren would only assign people who trusted to lead it. People like ... the Knights of Ren!

"Q," Poe said, "is Rey next to you?" Poe only had minutes before the walkers reached striking distance.

"Yes," Rey said after a few seconds. "How can I help?"

"Do you have the Artifact with you?"

A few seconds later, Rey held the Artifact with both hands and concentrated hard.

"The second walker in the first group and the third in the second group," Rey said.

Dameron immediately ordered his starfighters to attack the two walkers. He knew the Knights of Ren were powerful Force users but he hoped he could get them by surprise before they did any mind tricks against his pilots.

Six Resistance starfighters fired their missiles against the first walker and six against the second one. The remaining walkers fired upon them and Dameron and his pilots had to take evasive maneuvers to survive. All of them did so except for one pilot who flew in a straight line and was shot to pieces, possibly because one of the Knights of Ren had manipulated his mind.

"Rey says you killed them both 007," Q said. "She can no longer feel their presence. Congratulations!”

Poe acknowledged the message and headed for the captured airfield. If everything had gone according to plan, he would soon land on one of its repaired runways. Meanwhile, the other walkers stopped and appeared to be waiting for instructions. Typical First Order lack of initiative!

So far the plan had worked with admirable precision. They had penetrated the enemy energy shields in the nick of time, they had bombed all enemy runways, they had destroyed the enemy shield generator and they had captured the airfield just before the enemy had repaired it.

Before landing, Poe Dameron made a wide turn above the airfield for inspection. Thousands of Resistance troops were inside the trench, firing upon enemy troops. In addition, many of the Resistance transports that had surrounded the airfield had taken off and had landed behind the trench to use their turret guns for additional firepower.

After Poe landed, dozens of starfighters landed as well. Resistance personnel led them to the captured enemy hangars to be resupplied with fuel and ammo. Poe smiled. There is a certain satisfaction when you use the enemy resources against your enemy.

Letting the technicians refuel and rearm his starfighter, Poe approached the tall blond woman waiting for him. Amilyn Holdo smiled and approached him as well.

“Excellent plan Admiral,” she said.

“Thank you Admiral,” he replied and kissed her. They kept kissing each other for two minutes.

After the pleasantries were over, the two officers started discussing their next moves.

“We have lost thirty starfighters,” Poe said in a sad tone.

“We have lost five transports. Two hundred troops are dead and three hundred are wounded,” Amilyn said.

“We knew it would not be easy. But if we succeed, we will save billions.” Amilyn gently touched him.

“So far we succeed Poe,” she said.

“Yes,” he said. “Phases One, Two, and Three were successes. It is time for Phase Four.”

In Phase Four, the Resistance would use captured air-to-ground missiles to equip their starfighters for attacks against enemy walkers and anti-aircraft weapons. In addition, they would load their transports with captured bombs.

“Our transports,” Poe said, “are vulnerable and not very good as bombers. But they can hover above their targets. If we destroy all enemy anti-aircraft artillery and missiles around our targets, they can do it.”

“Be careful up there,” Amilyn said.

“I always am,” he replied and headed for his now refueled and rearmed starfighter.

Three minutes later, Dameron took off along with sixty starfighters. Twenty of them started patrolling the skies above the airfield to destroy enemy walkers and strafe approaching infantry. The rest headed for enemy airfields to bomb the runways again and keep the enemy aircraft grounded.

The remaining Resistance starfighters were rearmed with air-to-ground missiles and got ready to take off. Their mission was to destroy all anti-aircraft defenses around the hyperspace tracker and energy cannon factories.

Finally, fifty Resistance transports were refueled and loaded with bombs and waited for Dameron's signal to take off.

At the same time, another Resistance mission was taking place. Escorted by two squadrons of starfighters, the Millennium Falcon took off and headed for the enemy headquarters. Rey, Finn, Chewie, Q and two platoons of elite Resistance troops were inside it. Their mission: attack Kylo Ren and if you can … kill him.

Killing Ren was perhaps more important than destroying the factories. After the purges, only Hux and Ren remained to lead the First Order. Eliminating one or both would seriously cripple the enemy.

Despite enemy fire – and the loss of two Resistance starfighters –, the Falcon managed to land on top of the enemy headquarters. Q, Finn, Rey and Chewie disembarked along with four dozen troopers.

Inside his headquarters, Kylo Ren was losing control. They had bombed the runways again and his walkers could not advance because of enemy aerial attacks. His infantry was suffering heavy losses from aerial and ground fire and was also unable to advance. Even worse, he had lost the two Knights of Ren, the only people he fully trusted. And he was up to the neck with micromanaging everything because nobody was able to take the initiative to do it himself!

It was then that Kylo Ren sensed a powerful presence in his mind. It was Rey, the last Jedi.

“Hello Kylo Ren,” she said and he could sense her words in his mind. “I am here for you.”


	25. A duel, an infantry attack and a bombardmend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey reached Kylo Ren and they have a lightsaber duel.
> 
> Meanwhile, Amilyn Holdo has to defend the airfield from an enemy infantry attack and Poe Dameron has to neutralize the enemy anti-air defenses to allow the Resistance to bomb the hyperspace tracker factory.

The moment Rey finished talking to Ren, a number of stormtroopers appeared. Upon seeing them, she drew her lightsaber, turned it on, and approached them.

Although they were twenty of them and constantly firing, Rey did not hesitate. 

She calmly approached them and adopted a purely defensive fighting style that could deflect dozens of incoming projectiles every second. She knew Finn and Chewie would take care of the offensive.

The twenty stormtroopers opened fire. Rey deflected all blaster bolts while Finn and Chewie took careful aim and opened fire against them. They kept firing well-aimed shots until all of them were either dead or retreating.

“Let's go,” Q said and entered the building. The rest of the Resistance troops followed him.

Kylo Ren was furious. Everything was falling apart. His starfighters could still not take off. His anti-aircraft units were decimated. Although they still caused some casualties to the Resistance, they were unable to stop the enemy aerial units. This in turn had allowed Dameron's starfighters to destroy his heavy ground units and shoot down his transports.

Only infantry on foot could approach the enemy. Despite enemy air and ground fire, many thousands of them had successfully gathered around the captured airfield and were ready to attack. They would certainly suffer heavy casualties but they could retake the airfield and destroy the enemy bridgehead.

There was also Rey, another big nuisance. Hopefully, his troops would deal with her while he coordinated the attack against the airfield.

Suddenly, an explosion was heard outside the room. The Resistance was there. They somehow had managed to defeat his troops.

“Draw your pistols everybody,” Kylo Ren ordered while igniting his lightsaber.

“Take cover,” he said, while standing still and waiting for the enemy to enter.

A few seconds later, the heavy door was blown up and fell to the ground. The Resistance troops entered the room, opening fire against the First Order officers, who returned fire.

Much of the fire was aimed against Kylo Ren and Rey. However, both Force users easily deflected the projectiles fired.

It was a short and intense fight. When it ended, First Order personnel were dead. However, the same was true for many Resistance troops. Only Kylo Ren remained standing and unharmed.

Finn looked at the enemy Supreme Leader, took a well-aimed shot and fired. Without even thinking, Ren deflected the attack with his lightsaber. At the same time, footsteps were heard in the distance. First Order stormtroopers were approaching.

“You are surrounded,” Kylo Ren said. “Your only chance to survive is if you surrender.”

“Never,” all the surviving Resistance troops said in unison. Rey looked Kylo Ren intensely in the eyes. Kylo Ren looked her back. Nobody was going to retreat.

The footsteps became stronger. It was a matter of seconds now.

“Hold them while I fight their leader,” Rey said. All the surviving Resistance troops – including Q, Chewie and Finn – exited the room and took up defensive positions against the incoming First Order stormtroopers.

“Hello again Rey,” Kylo Ren said, taunting her. “We have some unfinished business from the past.”

As a response, Rey Force-threw the damaged door at him … only for Kylo to effortlessly throw it aside. His response was to throw a Force lightning she easily deflected with her lightsaber.

Both enemies were very close now. Without warning, Kylo Ren started his attack. Rey used her lightsaber to parry his blows and keep him at bay.

For the time being Ren was the aggressive one while Rey kept a defensive stance. But that was OK with her. Her defensive style minimized the risks for her and prolonged the duration of the duel, something that benefited the Resistance. The longer the duel lasted, the longer Kylo Ren would be unable to focus on the attack against the airfield.

Granted, killing Ren would cripple the First Order. However, Rey was the last Jedi and establishing the new Jedi Order was a higher priority than the death of the enemy Supreme Leader.

Rey had to admit Ren was a very capable swordfighter. He was aggressive but he never left an opening to his defenses for her to exploit. She had to bide her time and remain calm and patient, hoping he would soon make a mistake.

While Rey was fighting with Kylo Ren, Poe Dameron took a tally of his starfighter force. Out of the two hundred that had started the attack, forty were gone and twenty had remained in space to keep the enemy capital ships occupied. The rest were either refueling on the ground, patrolling the skies around the airfield or attacking enemy anti-aircraft defenses.

The factory that built energy cannons and the one that built hyperspace trackers were heavily guarded. They were surrounded by hundreds of anti-aircraft weapons of various types and calibers. It would be a very hard and costly destroying them all. Unfortunately, there was no other way if the Resistance wanted the factories knocked out.

Fifty Resistance starfighters attacked the hyperspace tracker factory. Its most formidable defense were four heavy anti-aircraft turrets on its roof. Braving enemy fire and evading two incoming missiles, Poe Dameron approached one of them. With skill and precision, he fired two armor-piercing missiles, destroying the turret.

The other three turrets turned to hit Dameron's starfighter but while turning to face him, other Resistance starfighters fired armor-piercing missiles against them, destroying them. Unfortunately, one of the starfighters was lost in the attempt. At the same time, other groups of starfighters kept firing against other enemy anti-aircraft artillery with their cannons, air-to-ground missiles and bombs.

After his successful attack against the turret, Dameron flew above the battlefield for a quick observation. To his satisfaction, most heavy enemy anti-aircraft guns were knocked out making their job easier. He gave the order to fly low and focus on light anti-aircraft guns. The moment all of them were gone, they could attack the missile batteries without much risk.

Inside the defensive perimeter, Amilyn Holdo checked her datapad. The Resistance pilots reported many thousands of First Order infantry gathered not far away from them. There were divided into two big formations, one in the north and the other in the south. Each one of them had a strength of about ten thousand soldiers. They were all waiting for Kylo Ren's order to attack. On the bright side, no enemy heavy ground units were present because the Resistance starfighters had destroyed them or forced them to retreat.

Unfortunately, most Resistance aerial units were away for the time being, trying to attack the tracker and the energy cannon factories. Even worse, the few Resistance aircraft left to support the occupied airfield reported that the enemy was moving.

To counter the attack, Holdo ordered most Resistance troops to take cover inside the ditch surrounding the airfield, especially in the areas directly facing the enemy. Only those that controlled air traffic, resupplied and repaired spaceships or guarded prisoners were exempt.

With three thousand First Order prisoners of war inside the perimeter, things were tricky. Five hundred Resistance troops had to guard them. If the enemy attacked, these troops would be badly needed. But if Holdo ordered them to reinforce the defense, they would leave the prisoners unguarded. Even unarmed, three thousand prisoners could easily overwhelm the Resistance from the inside.

There was only one way for the problem to be solved ...

Inside the First Order headquarters, the duel continued. Rey used the Force to throw a heavy object to Kylo Ren, only for him to cut it in two with his lightsaber. Rey kept her defensive stance while Kylo kept attacking.

A voice was heard from the intercom. “Supreme Leader, we are ready to attack. What are your orders?”

Kylo Ren looked at Rey. Rey started attacking him in order to distract him from giving the order to attack. But it was pointless. Kylo retreated without losing his calmness and gave the order. There was nothing Rey could do now.

Outside the room, Chewie, Finn, and the rest of the Resistance troops were fighting very hard. So far, they had managed to keep the enemy troops at bay. But they had lost two more soldiers and things were looking bad.

“Be careful!” Finn shouted and opened fire against an enemy stormtrooper ready to throw a grenade. Finn's fire distracted the enemy allowing Chewie to kill him with his bowcaster. The grenade fell close to three other stormtroopers who ran for cover, giving the Resistance soldiers a few seconds of well-needed peace.

Vice Admiral Holdo looked at the perimeter with her binoculars. Twenty thousand stormtroopers were approaching from two directions. She had the advantage of aerial superiority – even the small one currently available – and the entrenched position but the enemy had strength in numbers.

The few starfighters patrolling the airfield strafed the attackers with their guns. They killed some of them and forced others to take cover. However, the enemy kept approaching the trench despite the losses.

“Release the prisoners,” Holdo ordered.

The Resistance troops guarding the prisoners escorted half of them to the southern trench and the rest to the northern one. The troops manning it allowed them to leave unharmed. Only Group A – about a hundred First Order pilots and officers – were not allowed to leave. No longer forced guarding prisoners, the additional Resistance troops took cover in the trenches and reinforced their colleagues.

Apart from the obvious benefit – more troops available for defense – there was another reason for the prisoner release. The moment they reached the enemy lines, the First would become suspicious there were infiltrators among them. That would force them to stop the attack and examine the stormtroopers one by one, giving the Resistance valuable time.

A few minutes after the attack stopped, Poe Dameron radioed Holdo to ask how things were going.

“Excellent idea!” Poe said when she told him about the prisoners.

“Thank you Mr. Bond!” she said, with full of gratitude.

“You are welcome Mrs. Trench," he replied. "OK, back to business. What is our bomber status?” Poe asked.

“All bombers are armed, fueled, and ready to go,” Amilyn replied.

“Order them up,” Dameron said. The next minute, fifty transports, each fully fueled and carrying six heavy bombs, took off from the airfield and headed for the hyperspace tracker factory.

The transports were slow to move, hard to maneuver and had very light armor, making them unable to resist First Order anti-aircraft fire. Fortunately, the Resistance starfighters had destroyed every anti-aircraft weapon around the factories and both their pilots and the transport turret gunners were scanning the ground to hit enemy stormtroopers carrying portable anti-aircraft launchers.

A few minutes later, the fifty transports stopped and hovered five hundred meters above the enemy factory, low enough to remain accurate and high enough to avoid the bombs' blast.

“On my signal,” Dameron said through the radio. “Three, two, one, drop them!”

At exactly the same second, all transport doors opened and Resistance troops pushed the bombs out. Three hundred bombs, each weighting half a tonne fell to the factory, destroying its roof.

“The bombing was a success,” Poe radioed Holdo. “How are things going there?”

“I could use some help,” she replied. “The trick with the released prisoners could only work once.”

Admiral Dameron immediately ordered the transports to circle the airfield and act as gunships, using their turret guns to hit enemy ground troops. He and his group of starfighters followed to add their firepower to the mix.

When the First Order stormtroopers were three hundred meters away from the trench, all hell broke loose. Every Resistance trooper facing them opened fire, including the turret gunners of the landed transports. Dozens of stormtroopers were killed within seconds and the rest ducked for cover. Soon however, they reorganized and fought back.

Despite determined and accurate Resistance fire, the enemies were getting closer and closer until they were almost a hundred meters away. Their fire got more accurate, causing casualties among the Resistance troops. Soon, they would be close enough to drop grenades …

It was at that moment that salvation came. The fifty transports that had acted as bombers were now acting as gunships. Making a wide circle around the airfield, they turned their turrets against the enemy and opened fire, hitting the stormtroopes with hundreds of projectiles per second.

The combined fire from ground and air demoralized the First Order troops and forced them to retreat. The Resistance troops kept firing until the enemy scattered. Less than five minutes later, the victorious Resistance starfighters and transports landed on the airfield to refuel and rearm.

A few minutes later, a number of starfighters took off. Some of them patrolled the airfield while others headed for the energy cannon factory to destroy its air defenses. Dameron, his group of starfighters and the transports went for a second bombing run against the hyperspace tracker factory.

The attack to recapture the airfield had failed, partly because of determined Resistance defense and partly because the moment Rey attacked him, Kylo Ren had to focus on saving his life and ignore the attack. Due to the purges of competent officers, the surviving ones were to incompetent or scared to take the initiative the moment he stopped supervising them.

Kylo threw a heavy metal object at Rey using the Force. Rey used the Force to stop it in the air. The object moved between them until she threw it to a wall next to him. Undeterred, he attacked her with his lightsaber. Once more, he was the aggressive one and once more she tried to keep him at bay.

Ten minutes passed. The intensity of the duel got stronger and stronger. Both enemies were skilled swordfighters and Force users and that made the duel inconclusive.

“You cannot win Rey,” Kylo Ren said. “In a matter of minutes, my troops will defeat your friends and you will be surrounded. Soon, the Artifact and the lighsaber you are holding will be mine.”

“Not in your wildest dreams Ren,” Rey replied.

“I recognize the lightsaber. It once belonged to Luke Skywalker, my uncle and old teacher. But I believe you have another one, one that belonged to my grandfather.”

“Yes,” Rey said, “your mother has it.”

Suddenly, an alarm bell sounded. The Resistance transports had just bombed the hyperspace tracker factory for the second time. Kylo Ren looked at the monitor behind Rey. It showed that the hyperspace tracker factory was out of action. A third attack and the First Order would need three months to repair the damage.

Kylo Ren was in front of a dilemma. His ego told him to defeat Rey as retaliation for nearly killing him in Starkiller Base. But his logic as a Supreme Leader told him not to lose the First Order to defeat a single enemy.

Despite the loss of face, Kylo Ren knew what the best solution was. In a fluid motion, he picked a thermal grenade from his belt and threw it to Rey. Rey used the Force to stop it in mid-air, only to realize the grenade would blow up anyway. Using the Force, she jumped behind a big control to save her life.

The explosion that followed was very strong and deafening. Srapnel from the grenade and a strong heat wave engulfed the room. Fortunately, Rey survived the explosion without getting wounded. Aching from the explosion and sweating from the heat wave, Rey stood up ready to continue her duel.

“Where are you Ren?” she said. But when she looked around her, there was no trace of the leader of the First Order.


	26. Saving the Millennium Falcon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo Ren tries to escape from the Resistance and join forces with Hux. 
> 
> At the same time, the Resistance try to execute the next phase of their plan.

When Kylo Ren established his headquarters in Shipyard Four, he had made certain there was a hidden escape route for him ready just in case. His biggest concern had been a coup or a mutiny but his precautions worked equally well against the Resistance attack.

To better defend himself, Kylo Ren always carried - apart from his lightsaber - a blaster pistol and a thermal grenade. In case they attacked him, he would not go down gently.

Kylo descended the stairs until he passed under a large rock deliberately placed there and used the Force to push it. Making a sound, the rock fell to the ground behind him, blocking the way.

There were more such obstacles to further block his path and Ren used the Force to move them. If Rey or anyone else came for him, they would have to spend a lot of time to clear the path and he would be gone by then.

How had everything gone so bad? How had barely two hundred Resistance starfighters neutralized aerial forces fifteen times bigger? How had he and Hux failed to anticipate the enemy plans?

He had to admit the purges had their disadvantages. Only the incompetent ones had survived and he could not rely on them to think of anything. He and Hux had to do all the thinking while at the same time had to micromanage everything. No wonder the enemy had taken them by surprise.

It was the third time the transports had bombed the enemy hyperspace tracker factory using captured bombs. Three hundred of them had caused considerable damage, enough to knock the factory off for three months.

“All right,” Dameron said from the radio. “The energy cannon factory defenses are gone. Go back, rearm, refuel and hit it.”

Kylo Ren kept walking until he reached a large and spacious cave. It was dimly lit but he could easily recognize the outline of his personal starfighter. Two maintenance drones were there, keeping it ready to launch at a moment's notice.

A powerful radio that could transmit through hyperspace was also there and Ren used it to send an important and urgent message.

“What?” Hux asked when Ren had finished talking. “But how?”

“Don't ask, just jump to hyperspace now,” Kylo Ren said from the radio. The line went dead.

“Conadi you bastard,” Hux told himself. That General had given more secrets than he had suspected.

But it was too late for that now. He had to help the situation as best as he could. The thousands of starfighters of the Supremacy battle group could easily smash the less than three hundred Resistance spaceships.

Hux had to give credit to the Resistance. Bombing the runways to prevent aircraft from taking off and using the energy shields to destroy First Order starfighters were things of beauty. But the last part of their plan had failed. That Jedi named Rey had failed to defeat Kylo Ren in their duel and Ren had survived to call for reinforcements.

“Your plan was good but not perfect Dameron,” Hux said while using his datapad to contact the hyperdrive officer in charge.

“Activate the hyperspace drive at once,” Hux ordered.

“But Supreme Commander,” the officer said, “we just repaired the damages. We need to run more diagnostic tests to make sure everything is all right.”

Hux considered the point for a second. A prudent choice would be to wait. But the more they waited, the more damage the Resistance caused. And besides they already had run the major tests and checked everything for explosives.

What Hux didn't know was that Dameron's sabotage to the driver had been more extensive than just placing bombs. There was a deliberate glitch in the system BB-8, Dameron's droid, had introduced …

“Activate the driver anyway,” Hux ordered. “Destination: Shipyard Four.” Soon, Hux would cut Dameron's retreat.

Or would he?

“Where did he go?” Rey wondered. Kylo Ren had vanished into thin air. There was a hidden exit somewhere but Rey could not locate it.

Meanwhile, the sounds of the battle outside the room became stronger. Should Rey search for the hidden exit and go for Ren when she found it? Or should she help the Resistance troops survive and escape?

For a second, Rey opted for the first option. But she quickly dismissed it. It would take her minutes to find the exit and Kylo Ren had probably booby-trapped it anyway. One the other hand, if she didn't help the Resistance, they would all die. After all, she had accomplished her primary objective: she had distracted Ren, making him shift his focus away from the battle.

Activating her lightsaber, Rey exited the room. The Resistance were hard pressed and could neither advance nor retreat. They could only keep their enemies pinned down but not for long.

Determined to help her friends, Rey broke cover and advanced against the enemy, her lightsaber ready to deflect enemy fire. Upon seeing her, most stormtroopers opened fire, giving the rest of the Resistance the opportunity to retreat unharmed.

When the Resistance troops retreated, Rey did the same and covered them with her lightsaber. All of them survived and reached the roof to board the Millennium Falcon. An enemy trooper threw a grenade at her but she used the Force to throw it back at him, forcing him and all nearby stormtropers to run for cover.

When they reached the Falcon, Chewie went to the cockpit and Finn rushed to one of its quad anti-aircraft guns. Rey kept retreating slowly, facing the enemy and deflecting their fire with her lightsaber. But more and more stormtroopers were coming and it was harder and harder for Rey to keep them at bay. If someone didn't help her, the enemy would overwhelm her.

Finn was the one to help Rey. He opened fire with the Falcon guns, pinning the enemy down and giving her the opportunity to escape herself. She was the last to enter the spaceship.

“Energy shields on,” Q ordered the moment Rey entered the Falcon and it's door closed. Immediately, the spaceship took off while enemy fire harmlessly bounced on its shields. A few stormtroopers armed with rocket launchers appeared but Finn and the rest of the gunners shot them before they could do any harm.

In all, the mission had been a success. They had killed Kylo Ren's staff officers and Rey had kept him busy, giving valuable time for the Resistance to execute their bombing run.

Kylo Ren examined his options. Returning to his headquarters was impossible because the path was blocked. Option two – sit and wait for the attack to pass – was also out of the question. The First Order was under attack and its Supreme Leader hid in a cave like a coward? No way!

That left him with option three: use his starfighter to escape and join Hux in Supremacy. It was still a retreat but there is a difference between hiding in a cave doing nothing and joining the First Order flagship to regroup and counterattack.

Kylo Ren entered his starfighter – a modified TIE Silencer – and pressed a button. Within seconds the canopy closed and the engines started running. He checked the cockpit controls. His advanced starfighter was fully fueled and fully armed, carrying four air-to-air missiles. If he got lucky, he might shoot down one or two enemy spaceships.

A few seconds later, the secret cave door opened and Ren's starfighter moved towards the exit, gradually picking up speed. One minute later, he was airborne, gaining more speed each passing second.

A squadron of Resistance starfighters that acted as aerial cover for the returning transports turned to face him. They tried to approach him but his TIE Silencer was too fast for them.

One minute later, luck smiled at Kylo Ren. A squadron of transports was on its way to the captured airfield after having completed its bombing run. And even better … the Millennium Falcon was flying next to them! Taking careful aim, he fired two missiles against the Falcon and two against one of the transports before climbing at a higher altitude.

Inside his starfighter, Dameron observed the four missiles fired against the two Resistance spaceships. Both of them opened fire against them and took evasive action, but Poe knew it was futile. There was no way to stop them.

There was only one way for Dameron to help. And he could only save one of the two spaceships.

“Parachute! Now!” Dameron ordered the attacked transport pilot. At the same time, he sped up and started descending towards the Falcon. He only had seconds to act.

Inside his TIE fighter, Kylo Ren checked the radar. He had left his pursuers far away and the missiles had hit the transport. Falcon's turn would come very soon.

Checking the radar again, he saw there were many enemy starfighters around the captured airfield, making an approach for a better assessment of the situation impossible. With some regret, he pulled the nose of his starfighter up and headed for space to rendezvouz with Supremacy.

Inside the Millennium Falcon, Finn kept firing against the missiles. But he knew his action was more for psychological reasons. They were too small and maneuverable for him to shoot down. Despite Rey's use of the Force and Chewie's piloting skills, the missiles kept approaching. Only a miracle could save them. 

Suddenly, he saw a Resistance starfighter descending. Finn knew exactly who was piloting it and what he was trying to do.

“Way to go Poe!” he shouted.

Poe knew the only way to save the Millennium Falcon was by making the enemy missiles lock on him. To do so, he had to position his starfighter between them and the Falcon.

It was a very dangerous maneuver to do. It required extreme precision, speed, and you had no margin for error. If he failed, the Falcon would go up in smoke. But Poe Dameron was not a man accustomed to failure. Using all of his piloting skills, he moved his starfighter exactly where he wanted it to be.

After a few agonizing seconds, both enemy missiles locked on him. Poe made a sharp right turn. The missiles followed his starfighter, leaving the Falcon alone.

Unfortunately, there was no way for Poe to evade the missiles. There was only one thing left to do.

“Let's go buddy!” he said and pulled a lever. The next tenth of a second, the canopy opened and Poe with his trusted droid ejected the starfighter. Five seconds later, the two missiles hit the starfighter blowing it to bits.

“He did it!” Q said. “Poe Dameron saved us!” Everyone inside the Millennium Falcon breathed a sigh of relief.

“I saw him parachuting,” Finn said. “We have to save him.”

Everyone inside the Falcon looked at Q, then Chewie, then Q again. Q looked at Chewie and they nodded to each other.

“OK Chewie,” Q said. “Take us back.” The Falcon made a sharp turn towards the enemy.

Although Poe's parachute was fully open, he still hit the ground very fast. To make things worse, he didn't hit flat terrain but a destroyed anti-aircraft gun position and his right leg hit one of its damaged barrels. It was very painful. Fortunately, BB-8 next to him appeared to be unharmed.

Poe unbuckled the parachute and tried to move but his leg hurt from the fall. Even worse, a group of stormtroopers appeared from a distance and opened fire against him.

The only thing Poe could do was take cover and return fire with his sidearm. That slowed the stormtroopers down and forced them to take cover. But he knew that within minutes they would overrun his position and kill him.

Poe Dameron was not exactly optimistic. So far, the Resistance had lost fifty starfighters. Only ten pilots had survived though. The rest had either died when shot down or First Order stormtroopers had killed them upon parachuting.

The enemy fire intensified. Poe's leg was still hurting. Even worse, the fire appeared to come from more than one direction. They were surrounding him. Only friendly assistance could save him now.

“Poe? Poe?” What was that? Someone had called his name … from the radio! It was Finn!

“Yes buddy?” Poe replied. “Where are you?”

“In the Falcon. We are trying to locate you. Fire a flare.”

Poe looked at his droid BB-8. “You've heard Finn, buddy” The droid bleeped and fired a white flare from one of his canisters.

“I can see a flare!” Rey said. Chewie turned the Falcon towards it.

Five stormtroopers had pinned Poe down and more were approaching his position from the flank. Finn opened fire against the latter to scatter them.

A few seconds later, the Millennium Falcon landed on a flat area about fifty meters away from Poe. The Falcon's guns and two Resistance starfighters kept the enemies at bay to give Dameron the chance to run towards them.

“OK buddy, come,” Finn said. But Poe could not move.

“I can't move Finn,” he said. “I've injured my leg.”

Finn looked at the other Resistance troops. “Cover me, I am going for Dameron!” he said and jumped from the ramp. Q took his position as a gunner and started firing.

Finn immediately sensed someone jump next to him. It was Rey.

“I am coming with you,” she said and ignited her lightsaber.

The Falcon's gunners killed several stormtroopers and forced the others to take cover but more were coming each second. Rey had to deflect many blaster bolts coming from different directions till she and Finn reached Poe.

“OK buddy, I'll carry you,” Finn said.

Carrying Poe on his shoulders, Finn started his dangerous trip back to the Falcon. Rey kept retreating behind them, constantly deflecting enemy projectiles. Despite the intense enemy fire, they reached the Falcon unharmed.

“Thank you Finn. Thank you Rey,” he said with gratitude when the Falcon took off. “I would be dead without you.”

“Anytime Poe, anytime,” Finn replied.

“You did the same for us,” Rey said. “Those missiles would have killed us all.”

A few minutes later, the Millennium Falcon reached the airfield. Vice Admiral Holdo and Rose were there to greet them.

“I hope Poe is alright,” she said, worried.

A few seconds later, the Millennium Falcon landed on one of the runways. As soon as the ramp opened, Poe exited the spaceship. Finn had examined his leg wound and tied it with a bandage. It was not something that required immediate surgery but Poe would have to walk on a cane and be unable to fly for several days.

“I know what you did Poe,” Amilyn said. “You are my hero!” She approached him and gave him a passionate kiss on the lips.

A group of about fifty transports returned to the airfield. They had just finished their bombing run.

“They hit the energy cannon factory,” Amilyn said. “Two more attacks and it will be out of action for weeks. How about enemy infantry?”

“Our pilots have spotted hundreds of enemy walkers approaching,” Poe said. “They have attacked some of them but they can't stop them all. They will be here within a few hours.” A message flashed on his datapad.

“Two squadrons of starfighters bombed the energy cannon,” Poe said, reading the message. “We can evacuate now without fearing it will hit us. But... we lost two more of our pilots.”

“I know it is sad,” she said touching his shoulder. “But the more we lose today ...”

“... the more we save tomorrow,” he said and hugged her.

A few minutes later, about sixty seriously wounded troopers were carefully put inside the Millennium Falcon. Dameron and Holdo gave Chewie and Rose Tico their orders: they were to pilot the Falcon to an specific allied base and send the wounded there for treatment.

“OK Rose,” Poe said, giving her a small data disk. “Apart from the wounded, you are to give these instructions to our allies.”

“Yes Admiral Dameron,” Rose replied.

“OK Chewie,” Amilyn said, “my old friend. Good luck.” Chewie hugged Amilyn and he and Rose entered the Falcon and soon were gone.

After almost two hours, another bombing run against the enemy runways and two more against the energy cannon factory, the Resistance had accomplished their objectives in Shipyard Four. It was time for the next phase of the operation.

“All right ladies and gentlemen,” Poe Dameron said to the gathered transport pilots. “In a few hours, we are going to board Supremacy.”

A few minutes later, the surviving Resistance starfighters took off and circled the airfield to strafe enemy infantry, allowing the ground troops to enter the transports unopposed. Despite enemy fire, all Resistance troopers entered the transports within three minutes. Fifteen minutes later, all of them passed the energy shield area unharmed.

Ten minutes later, the First Order heavy walkers overrun the airfield. But they found nobody there, only burned TIE fighters and ground vehicles.

It had been a successful operation so far. The Resistance had destroyed hundreds of enemy TIE fighters, had killed many hundreds of stormtroopers, had destroyed a number of walkers. Most of all, they had caused heavy damage to the energy cannon and the hyperspace tracker factories, delaying their production and deployment for three months.

The casualties had been heavy though. Four hundred Resistance troops – including the pilots – were dead. Four hundred more were wounded. Ten transports and sixty starfighters has been lost as well. And the battle was far from over ...

Thirty capital ships led by Supremacy jumped from hyperspace above Shipyard Four. Three thousand TIE starfighters were inside them, ready to launch and cut the retreating Resistance spaceships to pieces.

“You sabotaged the hyperdrive Dameron,” Hux said, “but you underestimated our technicians. They repaired the damage faster than you had thought.”


	27. "I wonder whether there is an afterlife for droids."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hux has jumped from hyperspace but the Resistance have a hidden ace ...

Checking the radar, Hux realized something was wrong. Where were the escorting capital ships? Had they jumped to wrong coordinates? No, Hux soon realized. It was Supremacy that had jumped to the wrong area, thousands of kilometers away from its escorts.

How had that happened? Had the technicians made a mistake while repairing the hyperspace driver? Or had Dameron made more damage than the technicians had found?

“Spaceships approaching,” an officer said. Hux checked the radar again. A cloud of very small dots appeared relatively close to Supremacy. Were they the retreating Resistance spaceships?

“They are hostile, Supreme Leader,” the same officer said.

If Dameron had sabotaged the hyperspace driver to neutralize Supremacy, he had either made a terrible mistake or he had been extremely unlucky. From all the places in the Galaxy, Supremacy was in front of him now … and its energy cannon was ready to fire.

“Blow them up with the cannon. Prepare to launch starfighters,” Hux said.

Dameron was neither stupid nor unlucky though. His act of sabotage against Supremacy had worked as planned.

“Good job buddy,” he said and patted BB-8, his droid. It had been BB-8 that had hacked the Supremacy systems, causing it to jump to the wrong coordinates.

Inside the cloaked Resistance cruiser Kenobi, C-3PO and Leia Organa observed the First Order flagship passing in front of them.

“They will activate the energy cannon,” C-3PO said. “If they fire upon our spaceships, I estimate their chances of survival...”

“Never tell me the odds C-3PO,” Leia said, interrupting the droid. “How many times has Han Solo told you that?”

“I am sorry General,” the droid replied. “Shall we follow Admiral Dameron's plan?”

“We will,” Leia said in a determined voice. “Are we ready for evacuation?”

“Yes General,” an officer replied. “We have dismantled all hyperdrive systems and loaded them to our transports. We have also loaded the transports with explosives. What are your orders?”

“Prepare to evacuate,” Leia said. “C-3PO, you know what you have to do.”

C-3PO looked at her and she looked back, barely holding her tears.

C-3PO had been Leia's personal protocol droid for as long as she could remember herself. From her childhood in Alderaan, to her teenage years in the Senate, to the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Civil war, to the futile attempts to lead the Republic into a new future, to the foundation of the Resistance and the war against the First Order, the droid had always stood next to her.

There were so many things Leia remembered from C-3PO. Her decision to trust it with the plans for the Death Star (a decision with very far reaching consequences), her visit to Cloud City with him, Chewie and Han Solo and their near death in the hands of Darth Vader, the droid's ability to charm the Ewoks in Endor …

When the war ended and Leia became a Senator, a wife and a mother, C-3PO had been there along with her best friend Amilyn to help her with her career as a politician and her duties as Ben's mother. In the end she had failed, but it had herself to blame for that, not C-3PO.

As the years passed, Leia Organa ended up loving her droid as much as she would love another human being. Losing C-3PO would hurt her as much as losing every other member of the Resistance.

And now the time had come to lose C-3PO …

“You have been more than a servant C-3PO,” Leia said. “You have been a loyal companion, a friend.”

“Thank you General,” the droid said.

“Oh, don't call me General. For the first time in your existence I ask you to call me … Leia.”

“You are so kind … Leia,” C-3PO said. “I won't forget you … for the few remaining minutes of my existence.” A tear fell from Leia's eye.

“I wish there was another way … but someone has to pilot that cruiser. Thank you for volunteering my old friend.”

Leia looked at the people on the bridge. Everyone was waiting for her to give the order to abandon the bridge.

“Goodbye my old friend,” Leia told C-3PO for the last time.

“Goodbye Leia,” the droid replied. “May the Force be with you.”

A few minutes later, everyone in cruiser Kenobi – except C-3PO – entered the transports. Soon, all transports exited the cruiser and waited at a safe distance from Supremacy, ready to lead the boarding party against the enemy.

Inside the bridge, C-3PO pressed some buttons and pulled some levers. Immediately, the Resistance cruiser uncloaked and increased speed.

“Supreme Commander,” an officer said. “An enemy cruiser is approaching us at full speed.”

“What?” Hux asked.

Checking the radar, Hux realized the danger. If the cruiser kept moving at that speed and trajectory, it would crash on their energy cannon, neutralizing it.

Within seconds Hux realized the hard truth: there was no time for them to evade the cruiser. Poe Dameron had outsmarted him again!

“To all turbolaser gunners,” Hux ordered, “Fire! To all Supremacy fighter pilots: Launch immediately!”

Inside the Kenobi bridge, C-3PO turned the spaceship to compensate for a sudden maneuver Hux had just ordered. The droid hadn't lost sight of the energy cannon. Although Hux had the Supremacy hull reinforced, the cannon barrel was outside the hull, making it vulnerable to a determined ramming attack.

C-3PO could clearly see the energy cannon now. It had ignited, ready to fire against the approaching Resistance fleet. The droid pushed a lever and cruiser Kenobi increased speed. Despite some accurate fire from enemy turbolasers, the cruiser maintained its course.

The end had come. After so many decades helping the Rebel Alliance, the New Republic, the Resistance, and most of all Leia Organa, C-3PO prepared for the inevitable.

“I wonder whether there is an afterlife for droids,” C-3PO said. “What would the odds be?”

Two seconds later, cruiser Kenobi crashed on the Supremacy energy cannon. C-3PO, the loyal droid would never tell anyone the odds again.

“Goodbye my old friend,” Leia said and another tear fell from her eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always believed that C-3PO had to go in a meaningful way, like a true hero.
> 
> What are your thoughts?


	28. Hux vs. Dameron: The duel.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The sacrifice of C-3PO was not in vain. The Resistance take advantage of the confusion to board Supremacy. 
> 
> Hux and Ren realize the Resistance plan and rush to stop them. But Poe Dameron has a surprize for Hux.

There are two ways to neutralize an enemy capital ship: you either destroy it or you capture it. For the former, you use bombs, proton torpedoes, missiles, turbolasers, and plasma cannons. For the latter, you use boarding.

In boarding, a number of specialized spaceships get attached to the enemy capital ship hull. Using various techniques such as plasma cutters or armor-piercing explosives, the troops inside them cut a hole in the enemy spaceship's hull and enter it using a specialized airtight hatch.

Perhaps the most famous examples of boarding occurred during the Galactic Civil war. Twice, Darth Vader boarded Rebel Alliance spaceships to recapture the stolen plans for the Death Star. In both cases the boarding was successful but Vader still failed to find the plans in time.

After C-3PO successfully rammed cruiser Kenobi on Supremacy, things started moving fast. Led by Leia Organa, twenty transports carrying the dismantled hyperdrive systems of Kenobi, sixty tonnes of high quality explosives and about a hundred troops headed for the Supremacy hull.

Taking advantage of the damage and the confusion, the small transport fleet approached Supremacy unopposed and attached themselves to its hull. As soon as they did that, they used their beacons to help the Resistance fleet commanded by Dameron to home on their position.

A number of First Order TIE fighters appeared, trying to shoot down the Resistance fleet. Poe Dameron immediately ordered the surviving Resistance starfighters to engage them while the transports followed the homing beacons. Under Holdo's orders, the turret gunners of the transports opened fire, trying to help as much as they could. Soon, all Resistance transports had made contact with the Supremacy hull.

“All right everyone,” Leia said through the radio. “Attack!”

“What the hell is going on there?” Kylo Ren asked. He had received Supremacy's coordinates from Hux and he had moved to that particular area. Just like Hux, he had been surprised for the lack of escorts around the First Order flagship.

Two starfighters attacked him but Kylo was a superb pilot and soon he destroyed one of them while the other retreated. For a moment, Kylo wanted to chase it but the next second he abandoned the idea. Linking with Supreme Commander Hux was vastly more important than shooting down a single enemy starfighter.

A few seconds later, Kylo witnessed Resistance cruiser Kenobi crashing on their energy cannon, effectively putting it out of action for days.

“As if the day was not bad enough already,” Kylo told himself.

Soon the area around Supremacy was filled with hundreds of First Order starfighters. Half of them patrolled their flagship and the rest engaged the Resistance fleet.

Leaving the First Order pilots to deal with the Resistance spaceships, Kylo Ren's starfighter entered a hangar close to the Supremacy bridge. After disembarking, he took an elevator to the bridge. Soon, he was standing in front of Supreme Commander Hux.

Supremacy had a much thicker hull than most spaceships. Despite this, the Resistance transports attached themselves on it and soon opened holes using a combination of plasma cutters and explosives. When the holes were ready, the troopers opened the hatches at the bottom of the transports and waited for Leia's signal.

“OK everyone,” Leia Organa said. “Remember: drop a grenade first. When it blows up, it's the signal for you to go down. Go!”

Dozens of grenades exploded almost simultaneously. Taking advantage of the confusion, hundreds of Resistance troopers entered the enemy spaceship, ready to fight against the enemy stormtroopers. Their main objective was to isolate all passages from and to the hyperspace tracker area.

There were two groups of stormtroopers the Resistance had to deal with. The first one was the garrison inside the hyperspace tracker room led by one of the Knights of Ren. Upon hearing the explosions, the Knight immediately ordered all security doors shut and all defensive positions fully manned.

The second group was the rest of the Supremacy stormtroopers numbering about two hundred thousand. Hux used them to guard vital areas of the spaceship and as invasion forces. The Resistance only had minutes to build a strong defense against their counterattack.

To accomplish their objectives, the Resistance divided their forces into four groups. The first one, led by Poe Dameron, focused on isolating the hyperspace tracker room and prevent any of the troops inside it from attacking. The second one – led by Q – tried to capture a nearby hangar for the surviving Resistance starfighters to dock. The third group, led by Amilyn Holdo, was responsible for establishing a defensive line and preventing stormtroopers from interfering.

The final group, led by Leia, was responsible for unloading the packaged hyperspace drivers and the explosives loaded in the transports. Both were essential for winning the battle.

The battle raged inside Supremacy. Less than two minutes after boarding, the alarm sounded. Enemy reinforces would soon fall upon them.

“OK ladies and gentlemen,” Vice Admiral Holdo said, “move on.”

Despite casualties, the Resistance troops captured all corridors leading to the hyperspace tracker area, completely isolating it. Holdo had the troops under her command erect barricades with everything they could find and wait for the enemy counterattack.

Despite having difficulty walking due to his injury, Dameron skillfully commanded his troops. Using rifle fire, grenades and rockets they stopped an enemy counterattack from the hyperspace tracker area and forced the enemy to retreat and keep the doors locked. Poe posted two platoons of Resistance troops at every exit to prevent another counterattack and headed for Leia Organa to consult with her.

At the same time, the troops under Q's command entered the enemy hangar. Once more, Rey led the way and deflected attacks with her lightsaber while Finn followed her, neutralizing enemies with his accurate fire.

After two minutes of intense fighting, the surviving enemies surrendered. Q and BB-8, Poe's personal droid, rushed to hack the controls that opened the external hangar door. They succeeded in less than a minute and about a hundred Resistance starfighters that had survived the First Order counterattack found shelter there.

“This is Q,” he said on the radio. “Our starfighters are safe.”

A few minutes later, Leia, Poe, Amilyn, Q, Finn, and Rey had a conference in the middle of a corridor onboard Supremacy.

“So far the battle has gone as planned,” Leia said. “The ground attack was a tremendous success. How about our operation here?”

“We have isolated the tracker,” Amilyn said, “and all paths leading to it.”

“It's good the stormtroopers didn't have rocket launchers,” Finn said. “If they had ...”

“The advantages of not trusting your troops with too much firepower,” Poe said.

“OK Admiral Dameron,” Leia said, “are we ready for the next and final phase of our operation? Let's review our position.”

“Yes General,” Poe said and briefly informed everyone about their tasks.

Hux gestured for Kylo Ren to follow him to the small conference room next to the bridge. As soon as the door closed …

“We are in trouble. Very deep trouble,” Hux said. “They have isolated the hyperspace tracker compartment.”

“Don't worry Hux,” Kylo Ren replied. “One of the Knights of Ren is there. He said the Resistance pushed our troops back but they couldn't enter the compartment. It's too heavily guarded. And we have sent ten thousand troops to crash them.” Hux said nothing.

“They are trapped Hux,” Ren continued. “They can't escape in space because our capital ships and our starfighters will blow them up. They can't sabotage the tracker and our reinforcements are attacking them. No matter our losses, we are two million and they are less than three thousand. In two or three hours at most, we will be victorious.”

“Unless … “ Hux explained his rationale.

“Can they really do that?” Ren was shocked and frightened by the realization.

“Yes, they can. We have to stop them. I have given orders to our troops and they …” Kylo Ren cut him short.

“Do you really trust your officers to do that Hux?” Hux looked at him for five very intense seconds.

“No, I don't,” Hux admitted.

“Perhaps our purge was too successful Hux,” Kylo Ren said. “We shall have to do it ourselves,” Kylo Ren said and explained what was to be done.

A few minutes later, Ren and Hux exited the room and headed for their troops. Captain Phasma and the other Knight of Ren followed them.

“We are going to lead the troops personally,” Kylo Ren said. “I am taking the right flank.” The Knight of Ren followed him.

“Very well Supreme commander,” Hux said. Phasma followed him.

After the meeting was over, Q focused on his next task: having explosives planted on strategic points of the Supremacy hull. They were like the ones Dameron had used to sabotage the enemy hyperdrive. After an hour, all sixty tonnes of them had been planted.

At the same time, Rey used the Artifact to determine where Kylo Ren was. She located him advancing towards them and along with Finn, Leia Organa and many of the Resistance troops they went to face him.

Poe Dameron and Amilyn Holdo looked at each other.

“I really hope you like air-vents Mrs. Trench,” he said.

“Only if we are going to ambush someone Mr. Bond,” she replied.

“We are Mrs. Trench, we are.” They slowly started walking towards their objective.

When the Resistance troops boarded Supremacy, the First Order troopers initially tried to counter them with their superior numbers and knowledge of the interior areas of their spaceship. But they had failed because they were lightly armed, only carrying pistols and rifles. On the other hand, the Resistance carried heavier equipment such as sniper rifles and rocket launchers. In addition, they had studied the schematics Conadi had provided them and strategically placed themselves in corridors where only a handful of troops could pass at any given time, neutralizing the numerical superiority of their enemies.

Hux and Ren decided to change that. Under their command, thousands of First Order troops were equipped with rocket launchers, heavy machine guns and sniper rifles. After an hour, they were ready for action.

The troops under Hux's command approached the Resistance barricade. The Resistance had placed sniper and rocket troops there and for the first couple of minutes they held the enemy reinforcements back.

“Use your rockets,” Hux ordered. The First Order rocket launcher troops opened fire against the barricade. Within a minute, and despite determined opposition, half the troops defending it were dead and the survivors retreated to their second line of defense.

Only two members of the Resistance remained back, carefully hidden inside an air-vent, waiting for their opponents to advance. They were Poe Dameron and Amilyn Holdo.

“So far so good,” Amilyn whispered. “Those purges had the desired effect.”

“Yes,” Poe whispered. “They forced Hux to act on his own. Too sad we had so many casualties though. Are you ready?”

“Yes I am,” she said and checked the range-finding beam of her rifle.

After the first line of the Resistance defense collapsed, the First Order troops moved to deal with the second one. One minute later, they entered a big and wide corridor and slowly approached the second Resistance barricade.

The moment Hux passed a prearranged spot, Dameron pushed the air vent cover. The cover fell to the ground about fifty meters behind Hux and Phasma making a lot of noise.

The moment Hux turned to see what was going on, Holdo fired a warning shot next to him, surprising him and Phasma. The next second he saw a red laser dot on his chest, the unmistakable proof a rifle was aiming at him.

“It is a sniper rifle with armor-piercing ammo Hux,” Dameron said appearing from the air-vent. “You cannot survive it.”

Hux looked at the Resistance officer. “We finally meet each other Dameron,” he said without fear. “And by the way, the moment you shoot me, my troops will kill you, your friend up there and the rest of the Resistance.”

“Yes, it seems we are in a stalemate,” Poe said and threw a rope to the ground to climb down. One minute later, he was on ground level, facing Hux. Amilyn was still aiming at Hux using her sniper rifle.

Poe drew his pistol and aimed at Hux. He smiled, the smile of a man who has nothing to lose.

“That's really a warm reception Supreme Commander,” he said, looking at the surrounding troops. Most of them aimed their rifles at him and some of them aimed their rocket launchers at Amilyn's position.

The situation was a stalemate. If Poe shot first, the stormtroopers would kill both him and Amilyn. If the enemy shot first, Amilyn would kill Hux with her last breath. In both cases, Poe, Amilyn, and Hux would die.

“So what is your plan Dameron,” Hux said. “Even if you kill me, the First Order wins.”

“And you die anyway. So I have a proposition for you General.”

“What proposition?”

“For starters, my friend up there will come down unharmed. Two, we make a deal. If I win, your troops retreat and let the Resistance escape. If I lose, you may attack.”

“And what type of deal is that?” Hux asked.

“We duel Hux, you and I. Just the two of us. If you kill me, you proceed. If I kill you, you stop your attack.”

“And if I refuse?”

“I kill you, your troops kill me, game over.”

Hux smiled. “OK Dameron, sometimes even a senior officer has to do things personally.”

After the battle of Crait, both Hux and Dameron had spent many hours trying to perfect their quick-drawing skills with a pistol. None was certain it would happen but both had secretly hoped that one day they would face each other and the fastest one would win while the slowest one would die. And now the day had come.

Both Hux and Dameron were very fast and very good shots with a pistol having spent countless hours practicing. Both of them had secretly hoped it would end that way between them: with a quick draw duel to the death.

As per their agreement, the First Order troops retreated and left the big corridor empty. Only Dameron, Hux, Phasma and Holdo remained there.

Amilyn looked at Phasma. Was she in the room only to observe the rules of the duel … or was there something more than that? Hux nodded for his officer to approach, something that bothered Holdo.

“If they kill me, order an attack anyway,” Hux whispered her. Phasma nodded.

Amilyn approached Poe. “I suspect Hux won't hold his part of the deal. Even if you get him, his troops will attack,” she whispered.

“I know Amilyn. I know,” Poe said. “But it is still worth it.”

Poe Dameron and Armitage Hux exchanged a look. They were standing ten meters away from each other. Both were determined to win.

Poe Dameron was ready for Hux. He was calm and detached. He was not afraid, although he knew that in a few minutes he might be dead. He looked at Hux, trying to determine his emotions. But Hux remained calm and detached as well.

“On the count of three if that suits you Dameron,” Hux said.

“Alright Hux,” Poe said and looked at Amilyn. She nodded.

“I will do the counting if you don't mind,” Amilyn said.

“OK for me,” Poe replied and looked at Hux who nodded as well.

“One.” Both men tensed and stared each other. Both were ready to kill.

“Two.” Poe looked at Hux. He had the look of contempt on his face, the arrogance, the hatred, the unwavering self-confidence. He wondered for a fraction of a second whether he had the same expression on his own face.

“Three.”

Both men drew their weapons.

Both men fired.

Both men fell to the ground.

But only one of them was still alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The quick draw duel between Hux and Dameron is a shout-out to the many such duels I have seen in western films all those years. For some reason, I felt it was the perfect way for them to resolve their differences.


	29. The hardest decision Leia Organa ever made

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leia Organa faces her own son ... and she has to take the hardest decision in her life.

“He got me,” Poe said. His right arm was hit. Hux's projectile had grazed it.

“You are alive!” Amilyn said, relief on her face. But the next second, her relief was replaced with terror when she saw Phasma drawing a hidden pistol and aiming it at Dameron. Immediately, she aimed Phasma with her rifle.

“You killed Supreme Commander Hux,” Phasma said.

“Gwen,” Amilyn said in a calm voice, “your leader made a deal with Poe Dameron. He lost. You have to respect his wishes.”

“His orders were to kill you if he died,” Phasma said.

“Gwen,” Amilyn said, “do you remember Starkiller Base? You lowered the shields because you wanted to save lives, not because someone ordered you. None will punish you if you join us and disobey Hux's orders.”

“I loved Armitage Hux,” Phasma said. “I admired his mind, his determination, his focus. Lowering the shields was due to conscience but I never doubted the First Order should run the Galaxy with Hux in charge.”

“Gwen,” Holdo said, “you can always go back to your troops and leave us alone. I won't shoot you, I promise. After all, you chose not to shoot me when I escaped and I am grateful for that.”

“Drop your weapon Amilyn,” Phasma said. “I promise both of you will receive prisoner of war status and you won't be tortured.”

“No Gwen, we are not doing that,” Amilyn said, still aiming her rifle at Phasma. Phasma nodded and gave her final order.

“Stormtroopers! Attack!” Phasma ordered through her intercom, obeying Hux's final order. In addition, she raised her pistol to shoot.

But Amilyn Holdo was faster. The armor-piercing shot from her rifle easily penetrated Phasma's armor and exploded inside her body, killing her in an instant.

“I am sorry Gwen,” Amilyn said and shouldered her rifle.

Amilyn Holdo looked at the other end of the corridor. In less than a minute, the room would be full of First Order troops. To delay them, she removed her datapad from her belt and pressed a button. Immediately, a number of small bombs exploded along with some smoke canisters, confusing the attacking enemies and giving her and Poe time to retreat.

Despite his leg injury during the battle of Shipyard Four and his wound during the duel, Poe managed to stand up on his own. Nevertheless, Amilyn still had to help him walk towards their second line of defense.

It took them a couple of minutes to reach their defensive line. Resistance troops helped Holdo carry Poe and threw smoke grenades to further confuse and annoy the enemy stormtroopers.

Q, was waiting for them at the other end of the door. He offered Poe some water from a canteen and examined his wound.

“Thank goodness you made it,” Q said. “What happened?”

“I killed Hux,” Poe said. “But he got me.”

“It is not that serious,” Q said. “I will apply some bacta spray and you will be OK in a couple of days.”

It was a bit painful but less than Poe had feared. After Q cleaned his wound, Amilyn took a fresh bandage and carefully applied it on it.

“You'll be as good as new,” Amilyn said with a smile.

“Thank you Admiral,” Poe said and looked at Q. Q nodded and started briefing Dameron.

“We have placed explosives in the right places. We have also removed the hyperdrives from cruiser Kenobi and placed them inside the captured enemy hangar. They are fully operational as we speak.”

“Good. It is going to be the biggest heist in the history of the Galaxy,” Poe said.

Meanwhile, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren along with one Knight of Ren approached the Resistance positions from another corridor. Leia, Rey, Finn, and hundreds of Resistance troops were there, ready to oppose them. Nobody opened fire though. They were all waiting for something: a signal, an enemy move, the other side to fire first ...

“They outnumber us at least ten to one,” Finn said. “And they can bring reinforcements.”

“I am going to challenge their leader to a duel,” Rey said. “I might defeat him this time.”

“No way!” Leia said. Finn, Rey and dozens of Resistance troops looked at her in surprise.

“I am going to talk to their leader,” Leia said. “Nobody shoots.”

General Leia Organa stood up from the barricade, her arms in a non-threatening gesture. Noone from the First Order tried to shoot her.

“Ben? Ben? I want to talk to you.”

The ranks of the First Order stormtroopers opened and Supreme Leader Kylo Ren walked through them. He stood in front of his troops, barely fifty meters away from Leia.

A tear fell from Leia's eyes. But she knew she had a very important task to do, the hardest of her life. She wiped her tear and took a deep breath to steady her nerves. Slowly, she walked towards her son.

Leia Organa was only ten meters away from her son. She was no longer crying. She had finally made peace with herself and the decision she had to make, the saddest and hardest of her life. Taking another breath, she got closer.

Kylo Ren drew his lightsaber and got ready to activate it. He was slowly walking towards his mother, his face passionless and determined. He knew what he had to do, what he wanted to do.

Both mother and son stopped just one meter away from each other. Both examined each other's face for a long minute. Both wanted to talk but nobody wanted to say the first word.

It was Leia Organa who finally broke the silence.

“Ben,” she said. “Look at me. Please.” Ben Solo did as she asked.

“What went wrong Ben? What happened?”

“I stopped asking myself that question years ago mother.”

“Ben, no matter what you did, no matter what happened, I am still your mother. No matter what you did wrong, we can work things out.”

“I am afraid it is too late for that,” came Kylo Ren's reply.

“Ben, it's not your fault,” Leia said with tears in her eyes. “Your father and I argued all the time and neglected you. It's our fault and Snoke's for using the Force to turn you. But it's all right. We can work things out. We can.”

“Not anymore mother. I am too deep down the path of darkness to turn back.”

“You have only been in that path for a few years Ben,” Leia said with more tears in her eyes. “Anakin Skywalker, your own grandfather, turned to the light side again after more than twenty years. You can do the same as well.” Kylo Ren remained silent.

“And besides, you are the leader of the First Order. You can do so much good now,” Leia continued. “You can order your troops to stand down in the entire Galaxy and use the First Order army to keep the peace. Your enemies can become your allies now. We can bring peace in the Galaxy Ben. No matter what you did, you can always be forgiven for that. It is never too late.”

Leia was desperate to save her son. And she believed every word she had said. Yes, Ben could be saved. But...

“You have made a mistake mother. The same mistake my father, uncle Luke Skywalker, and Snoke did. You all assumed the First Order manipulated me to join it. But you were wrong.” The expression on his face hardened. Leia knew what that meant and she discreetly put her right arm behind her back. She gently touched the lightsaber that once upon a time had belonged to her father.

“No mother, I was not manipulated. I joined the First Order because … I chose it,” Kylo Ren said and activated his lightsaber.

The red lightsaber blade pierced Leia's chest right next to her heart. She looked at him, the last time she would see him again, the last time she would see a human being in her life.

But there was still life left in the Resistance General. After all, when you have survived the Death Star, the Galactic Civil War, and a series of tragedies, you have proven yourself a person of true grit and resilience. Despite the betrayal from her own son, Leia Organa knew what she had to do.

Leia Organa did not hesitate. She only had seconds of life left, precious moments for her final act, her farewell to a Galaxy. With unbelievable strength, she drew the hidden lightsaber, aimed for her son's chest while his eyes were focused on her face, and ignited it.

A sharp wave of pain paralyzed Ben Solo. He knew his own mother had hit him. He looked at the lightsaber blade piercing his own chest and he immediately knew he was dead, that no amount of medical attention would bring him back to life, no amount of Force use could save him. He looked at his mother again, his expression a mixture of disbelief and pain.

Leia knew it was she who had to kill her own son and die in the process. As a mother, she knew she would never forgive the man or the woman who killed Ben. Her hatred would eventually surface and consume her. In addition, she knew she had to pay for her mistakes. It had been half her fault Han Solo had left her, it had been partly her fault her son had turned to the dark side, it had been partly her fault Luke Skywalker had left them, it had been her failure she hadn't convinced the New Republic about the threat the First Order had been. Fortunately, Poe and Amilyn, Rey and Finn, Chewie, Rose and Q were all competent and they would continue fighting for the Galaxy when she was gone.

Leia Organa smiled. Her expression was one of peace and acceptance. Killing her son had been the hardest decision of her life … but how many billions of fathers, mothers, sons and daughters would survive because of that?

Leia looked her son for the final time. She could afford to forgive him now for all the pain he had caused to her and the rest of the Galaxy. There was only one thing left for her to do: to ask for his own forgiveness.

“Forgive me … my son,” she said and closed her eyes, never to open them again. Hopefully, her son would forgive her as well.

“It is too late … mother,” Kylo Ren said and closed his eyes, dying.

Both sides looked at each other in stunned silence. Both sides had just lost their leaders and nobody seemed willing to take the initiative to restart hostilities.

Suddenly, both the Resistance and the First Order troops witnessed a very unusual phenomenon: Leia's body evaporated. Only her clothes remained.

“Our leader, Leia Organa became One with the Force,” Rey said and lowered her head in respect. Two tears fell from her eyes.

For some reason neither the First Order nor the Resistance wanted to restart hostilities. Both sides left the battlefield without firing a shot. Rey used the Force to pull Leia's lightsaber to her direction.

It was time to get out of there. The surviving Resistance troops retreated behind airtight doors, closed them and waited for Admiral Dameron – Leia's designated successor – to give the order.

“OK Q,” Poe said, “get us out of here.” Q nodded and pressed a button on his datapad.

Q and the troops under his command had placed sixty tons of explosives in strategically selected areas of the spaceship bow. The moment he pressed the button, the explosives blew up the Supremacy metal skeleton holding the bow together, cutting it from the rest of the spaceship. In addition, the explosions pushed the bow away from the rest of the enemy flagship, allowing it to drift in space.

The First Order starfighters hesitated because after Hux's death, there was nobody to give the order to attack. Only a handful of them ended up firing with their missiles and their cannons. However, their attacks were ineffective. The Supremacy bow was the most heavily armored part of the spaceship and the TIE fighters missiles only caused superficial damage.

Five enemy capital ships started approaching them. But it was too late for them to do anything.

“Are the hyperspace drivers ready?” Dameron asked. Q nodded.

“Get us out of here,” Poe ordered.

“But of course Mr. Bond,” Q said and pressed a button. A few seconds later, the Supremacy bow was in hyperspace, far away from the enemy.

Six hours later, the Supremacy bow that the Resistance had turned into a makeshift spaceship, reached an Outer Rim planet. They had made it!

“And that was why both Hux and Ren were worried and exposed themselves,” Finn said. “That was a great plan Poe.”

“Yes Finn,” Poe said. “They realized we were not going to sabotage the tracker but steal it instead.”

“We stole a hyperspace tracker!” Finn said. “Unbelievable! It is the biggest heist in the history of the Galaxy!”

“Yes, buddy,” Poe said. “And despite losing General Organa, we managed to kill both Hux and Ren. Just imagine the chaos that will follow!”

“I am sure you have a plan to exploit it buddy,” Finn said.

Amilyn Holdo approached the two men. After briefly examining Poe's wound, she took a seat next to them.

“It was a yes and it was unanimous Poe,” Amilyn said. “All the Resistance want you to become Leia's successor … permanently.”

“Congratulations!” Finn said

“Good,” Poe said. “Now, if everything has gone according to plan, Chewie and Rose have already reached our allies and we should expect them within the next minutes.”

A few minutes later, a number of allied starfighters approached the makeshift Resistance spaceship.

“This is the Rebel Alliance,” the head of the spaceship squadron declared on the radio. “Identify yourselves.” It was exactly as Poe had expected.

Poe looked at Finn who was sitting in front of a radio console, formerly belonging to cruiser Kenobi and nodded. Finn nodded back. He knew exactly what he had to say.

“This is the Resistance flagship ... Leia Organa!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I believe Leia should be the one to kill Kylo and not Rey. It was more personal for her and gave her character closure.


	30. The plan to win the war

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the battle is over, the Resistance push for the final victory with a new and unconventional plan.
> 
> Rey uses the Artifact to recruit Jedi padawan to help the Resistance and reestablish the First Order.
> 
> Five very important visitors come to see our heroes ...

Dameron's plan had been a tremendous success. The Resistance had achieved all of their objectives: they had bombarded Shipyard Four, they had stolen the enemy hyperspace tracker and they had killed the enemy leadership.

They had paid a heavy price though. Out of the three thousand people who had taken part in the attack, eight hundred were dead – including their leader General Leia Organa – and nine hundred were wounded.

In addition, half their starfighters and all their transports – except the Millennium Falcon – were gone. But considering the potential benefits – bringing peace to a Galaxy of hundreds of trillions and saving billions or even trillions of lives in the process – the casualties were very light.

Things were far from over. The First Order was still very strong. Fortunately, there were weaknesses the Resistance could exploit.

There were about one thousand enemies still barricaded in the hyperspace tracker area, half of them technicians and the rest heavily armed stormtroopers. In addition, their commanding officer was one of the two remaining Knights of Ren. Dameron's first duty as head of the Resistance was to get rid of them.

Laying siege and waiting for the enemy to surrender was out of the question. Their enemies had enough food, water and oxygen to last for days and the more the Resistance waited, the more deaths from First Order capital ship groups would fail to prevent.

“We need a fast solution,” Poe said, “and we only have two options: either we storm the tracker area or we start negotiations.”

“I estimate at least a thousand casualties for us if we attack,” Q said. “Besides, they might sabotage the tracker.”

For that reason, Poe sent Rey – the only member of the Resistance immune to the Force mind tricks the Knight of Ren might use – to negotiate the enemy surrender. The terms the Resistance offered were generous: whoever chose to surrender would receive prisoner of war status and his safety was guaranteed. Those who wished to leave and rejoin the First Order would be allowed to do so unharmed.

Realizing he would lose and die anyway, the Knight of Ren surrendered the compartment without a fight and left to rejoin the First Order. So did most First Order troops and technicians.

Fifty stormtroopers opted to surrender and they became prisoners of war. So did a hundred technicians. Immediately, the Resistance offered the latter a handsome wage if they chose to work for them. Some of them took the offer.

“OK everybody,” Poe Dameron said upon entering the hyperspace tracker compartment. “Our meeting begins.”

Eight hours after the loss of Leia Organa, Poe chaired his first war council as head of the Resistance. He, Amilyn, Q, Finn, Rey, Chewie and Rose Tico had some very important points to discuss.

The first point was their recent successful attack. Their opportunity to defeat the First Order would end the moment they deployed hyperspace trackers and energy cannons on a massive scale. Their attack had extended that period of opportunity from three weeks to fifteen, giving the Resistance and their allies the time they needed to defeat the enemy.

The second point was the loss of Kylo Ren and Armitage Hux. Purging their competent senior officers and replacing them with loyal but incompetent ones who were too scared to take initiative could only mean one thing: the moment Hux and Ren died, nobody would step up to lead the First Order and even if someone did, he would be an incompetent one that nobody would obey anyway.

“There is a power vacuum in the First Order now,” Vice Admiral Holdo said. “We need to move fast to exploit it.”

The third point was the hyperspace tracker. According to Q and Rose Tico, the enemy hadn't sabotaged it and within a short amount of time they could use it for themselves. They could focus on specific First Order convoys and they would attack them one by one.

“Let's also remember,” Q said, “that our allies no longer have to worry about the tracker. They have more freedom to move now.”

“Correct. We shall send them a message the moment our meeting is over,” Poe said.

The fourth point was the Artifact. Its long-term use was obvious: Rey would use it to recruit thousands of Force-sensitive people to reestablish the Jedi Order. But such an activity would take years, perhaps an entire decade.

And the Resistance needed the Jedi help right now.

For that reason, Rey with Finn's and Chewie's assistance developed and proposed another plan: they would recruit a few Force users now and train them to use Jedi Mind tricks against enemy senior officers. The full development of the Jedi Order would wait for after the war.

The fifth point was the Big List, a list Conadi had given Dameron when they had met in Cloud City. It included hundreds of businessmen and businesswomen who had secretly collaborated with the First Order before and during the war, making huge profits in the process.

“We are going to keep their secrets,” Poe said, “but only if they finance the Resistance. And we are going to need a lot of money for our strategy to work.”

Rose Tico had a sister named Paige who had lost her life during the war. In addition, both she and her sister had been slaves during their childhoods. Understandably, she was very upset with these people suffering no serious consequences for their actions.

“Those men and women deserve to rot in jail,” Rose Tico said, annoyed. “We are essentially letting them off the hook in exchange for a monthly payment.”

“You have a good point Rose,” Amilyn said in a calm voice, “and everyone here would like to see those people behind bars. But the money they will give us will allow us to finance the war and save billions in the long run.”

“What would you choose Rose?” Dameron asked, in a very calm voice. “One more of them in jail or ten thousand additional lives saved because of the money he gave us to avoid prison?” In the end even Rose agreed that getting the money was a better alternative if that saved lives.

A few minutes later, the meeting was over. Rey, Finn and Chewie entered the Millennium Falcon to start their mission. Q and Rose remained in the transmitter area to put it back to operational status. Amilyn Holdo checked the names on the Big List to make contact with some of them. Finally, Poe Dameron started communicating with their allies. They would need a lot of assistance and very soon.

It seemed strange, but the first stop Rey made in her attempt to reestablish the Jedi Order was in Canto Bight, a casino planet. But according to the Artifact, there was a very powerful Force user there.

It was night when the Millennium Falcon secretly landed outside the city. Chewie and R2 stayed back to guard the Falcon, while Rey and Finn went to a nearby stable to search for the Force user.

“I remember this place,” Finn said. “When Poe and I were on a mission here, we witnessed a young boy use the Force to lift a heavy bucket of water.”

“It is probably the same person we are after,” Rey said.

Five minutes later, they saw him. The young boy Finn had mentioned appeared, holding a big, empty bucket. He placed it under a water hose and waited for it to fill with water. A few minutes later, the bucket was full and something amazing happened: the boy moved it without touching it.

“Yes, it is him,” Rey said, checking the Artifact. “Let's go and meet the stable owner.”

Twenty minutes later, Finn and Rey were sitting in front of an old and wealthy man dressed in a tuxedo, apparently on his way to the nearest casino. He was not exactly thrilled to see them and only agreed to do so when they said they were coming from the Resistance.

“So, you wanted to see me,” the man said, not trying to hide his displeasure.

“Yes, about one of your servants,” Rey said. “He appears to be a slave.”

“Slavery is still legal in Canto Bight,” the man said. “And I am not mistreating my slaves. So what about him?”

“How much do you want to free him?” Finn asked.

The man looked at them and told them his price. Finn and Rose looked at each other. The price he had asked was double what someone would normally ask. But since they had no time for negotiations, they agreed. Ten minutes later, a number of gold coins changed hands and the young boy earned his freedom.

“Hello young man,” Rey said to the now free boy. “What is your name?”

“James,” the young boy replied.

Soon, Rey told James what she needed from him: he would use the Force to convince bad people to surrender without a fight.

“Will I become a Jedi?” James asked full of expectation.

“If you want to, you will,” Rey said with a smile.

A few minutes later, they were back in the Millennium Falcon. James was awed by everything he could see around him. But how many kids would not be awed if they entered a legendary spaceship, met legendary Chewbacca, chatted with R2 and all that while traveling to hyperspace?

Within a week, twelve powerful Force users like James had been recruited. All were transferred to the Resistance headquarters, waiting for their opportunity to help the Galaxy.

“Yes Mr/Mrs … ” Amilyn would typically say either in person or – usually – from the radio, during her communication with the Big List billionaires. “I understand you never had bad intentions and you never thought the First Order would turn out to be evil. Yes, you have my deep condolences for the friends you lost when the Hosnian System was blown up.”

Amilyn Holdo knew they were bullshitting her … but she had to tolerate them for the sake of the Galaxy.

“Yes,” Holdo would say, “the legal authorities might have some questions for you when the war is over. Yes, I fully understand things have been overblown out of proportion in your case, so I can guarantee for the Resistance's discretion. Thank you for your gratitude and I am certain you can help us as well. How? Well, as you know, buying ammo, fuel or spare parts is expensive so …”

“It is so disgusting,” Amilyn told Poe when they were alone. “So much hypocrisy. So many: 'I didn't understand this, I didn't know that.' They knew about the First Order from day one and they went along to have a big profit.”

“I understand it is disgusting,” Poe said. “But we still need their money.”

Despite her disgust and her sadness, Amilyn succeeded in her task. Soon, the Resistance accounts received millions of credits on a daily basis.

“OK,” Poe said after some days, “we have the Jedi assistance, we have the money. Q, turn the tracker on.”

Q nodded and activated the tracker. After one hour, it located a big supply convoy destined for a First Order base.

“Good,” Poe said. “Time to test our new tactics.”

“Very well,” Rey said and headed for the Millennium Falcon. Finn, Chewie, and the twelve Jedi padawan she had recruited followed her.

A few hours later, the Falcon carrying Rey, Finn, Chewie, the twelve padawan, Poe Dameron and Amilyn Holdo reached the First Order convoy. It consisted of ten big freighters and four capital ships for escort.

“All right Rey,” Poe said. Rey nodded and gestured for the padawan to form a circle.

“Focus on the convoy commander,” Rey told the padawan. After a few minutes, they all had focused on the Rear Admiral that commanded the formation.

“Good,” Rey said. “Now repeat after me: you do not want to attack.”

“You do not want to attack,” the padawan repeated in unison.

Inside one of the escort capital ships, the convoy commander had a sudden feeling of hesitation.

“You want to stop the convoy end enter negotiations,” Rey and the padawan said in unison.

“Stop the convoy,” its commander ordered.

“Time to negotiate,” Poe said. “Ready Admiral?” Vice Admiral Holdo nodded and ten minutes later she and Poe docked their shuttle to the enemy command ship and were escorted to the bridge.

“Good evening Admiral,” Poe Dameron said when he and Holdo reached the bridge. “We would like to discuss with you in private.”

“So, what do you want to tell me?” he asked when they were alone in a small room next to the bridge.

“Let's face the facts,” Dameron said. “We used your hyperspace tracker to locate you. We can locate you again if you try to escape in hyperspace. Essentially, you and your formation are doomed.”

“But,” Holdo continued, “you have a way out of it.”

“Which is?” the First Order Admiral asked.

“Jump to hyperspace in these coordinates,” Amilyn said showing him the coordinates in her datapad, “one spaceship at a time. Surrender your fleet to the Rebel Alliance.”

“And why to do that?”

“You will receive full immunity from any prosecution for war crimes. In addition, you will receive a reward of one million credits for every capital ship.”

The Rear Admiral examined his options. If he continued his course, they would probably ram his spaceships. If he jumped to hyperspace to evade them, they would follow him and attack again. And even if he somehow successfully evaded or defeated them and survived them, his position with the First Order was uncertain after Hux's death. His successor could easily have him killed.

In addition, what if the First Order lost the war? The fact Hux and Ren hadn't named successors – to prevent a mutiny from them – the defeat at Shipyard Four, the purges … The chances for victory had never been so low, the Rear Admiral thought.

On the other hand … fourteen million credits?

“You have a deal,” he said and exited the room to give the necessary orders. 

Twenty-four hours later, the Rear Admiral was fourteen million credits richer and the Rebel Alliance was more than grateful for the tens of thousands of prisoners of war, the four cruisers, the ten big freighters and the valuable supplies they carried.

“It was a bit expensive,” Amilyn said, “but it was worth it. And we won without spilling a drop of blood.”

“That's the spirit," Poe said. "Our Big List friends bribe us to avoid punishment and we use their money to bribe our way to victory.”

Soon, a pattern was developed: The tracker would locate an enemy formation. A group of padawan would use Jedi mind tricks to convince its commander to stop and negotiate. Resistance delegates would inform him he was in a hopeless situation and his choices were either death or surrendering his fleet for a lucrative reward.

Most enemy commanders accepted the offer. The rest opted to fight, so the Resistance used captured enemy cruisers to ram their command ships, killing them. Afterwards, the Resistance repeated the process with the next in the chain of command. Having just witnessed the death of his predecessor, the new group commander was usually more than happy to accept the generous Resistance terms.

Five weeks later, the rate of negotiated surrenders had reached three a day. More than three hundred enemy capital ships had changed hands. 

The most determined First Order officers – including the two Knights of Ren – tried to organize their defenses and retreated around their main bases and their shipyards, trying to reorganize themselves for a counterattack. Many others though, less determined and more corrupt, took the money and surrendered their spaceships under their command.

Twelve weeks after the battle for Shipyard Four ...

The collapse of the First Order continued at an accelerating pace. Only the four main First Order shipyards remained plus isolated holdouts in many planets. Except for the capital ships guarding the Shipyards, the rest of their fleets were either destroyed or captured.

The last hope of the First Order was to develop enough hyperspace trackers and energy cannons to reverse the tide of war. But the Resistance and their allies would not allow that. After stripping a hundred captured capital ships from everything that could be salvaged, the Rebel Alliance sent them to a large scale ramming attack against Shipyard Four.

Despite intense fire from the patrolling capital ships, the use of the energy cannon and the existence of the energy shield, the capital ships successfully accomplished their mission. The Shipyard Four would close for another fifteen weeks, enough time to further undermine the First Order. As a bonus, the attack demoralized a number of First Order senior officers convincing them to surrender their fleets for a handsome reward.

The last act of the war was written when some surviving First Order senior officers started talking about surrender. During the first days after the deaths of Kylo Ren and Hux, such voices were low and isolated. But as the time passed and more and more of their capital ship formations surrendered to the enemy, the voices became stronger and stronger.

To entice them, the Resistance offered them a huge amount of money – gathered from the Big List billionaires – and full immunity from prosecution for war crimes. Many in the First Order had serious thoughts about that.

Only the Knights of Ren refused to surrender and opted to fight till the bitter end. But the troops and the officers surrounding them had realized the war was lost and the more it lasted, the more they risked losing their lives.

To their credit, both Knights of Ren put up a fight when the troops surrounding them mutinied. Both killed about ten stormtroopers each before dying. But that was not enough to stop the First Order collapse.

Inside the hidden Resistance base, Rose Tico was running, her face full of joy.

“They surrendered! They surrendered! The war is over!”

“We won the war Mr. Bond!” Amilyn said and kissed him.

“It is so nice to hear that Mrs. Trench,” Poe replied and opened a small box containing bubblegum.

“It is either kicking ass or chewing bubblegum,” Poe said. “The ass-kicking part has just ended. Time for some bubblegum!”

The war was finally over but with a heavy price. Billions were dead, many planets had been looted, the Hosnian System was gone, and who knew whether a hidden holdout existed somewhere to create the second First Order. After all, the First Order itself had started as an Imperial holdout about three decades ago.

On the bright side, the new Rebel Alliance had hundreds of captured enemy capital ships to police the Galaxy and the Resistance had the hyperspace tracker to spot significant enemy activity. Even if a First Order holdout existed somewhere, they would easily eradicate it.

It is not enough to win the war, a philosopher had once said. You also need to win the peace. Using the captured enemy resources combined with massive investments by the Big List billionaires, the Alliance would rebuild the Galaxy. And a reestablished Jedi Order would certainly help ...

For all its faults, the Jedi Order had been a very important and useful presence in the Galaxy. For many thousands of years, they had acted as peacemakers, diplomats, mediators, and only occasionally as soldiers. The image of the Jedi warrior who attacked with his lightsaber was accurate but far from representative. For the most part, the Jedi used their powers and their gravitas to avert fighting.

“The best Jedi is not the one who deflects blaster bolts with his lightsaber,” Luke Skywalker had written. “The best Jedi is the one who convinces the man with the blaster to reexamine his life and stop using a weapon to solve his problems.”

Unlike Luke Skywalker, Rey had the Artifact to help her. So far she had recruited fifty padawan to help the Resistance and she was not going to stop there. With Dameron's blessings and financial support and Finn's and Chewie's direct involvement, she would recruit thousands more.

Finn approached Poe. He was holding something in his right arm. It was the ring Poe had asked him to find in the deserts of Jakku, a ring Poe always carried with him to propose to the one woman of his life. Finn had finally found it!

“You know Poe, you and the Vice Admiral might ...”

“Keep the ring Finn. I mean it.”

“Are you sure Poe? Now that the war is over you might want to ...”

“So will you Finn to Rey,” Poe said in a friendly tone. “Don't worry,” he continued, “I have made my arrangements.”

“Thanks buddy,” Finn said. “I will certainly need the ring very soon.”

Rey approached the two men. She too was happy for their victory and had a big smile on her face.

“Excuse me,” Poe said. “I just remembered I need to discuss something important with Vice Admiral Holdo. Catch you later.” With these words he left them.

Finn looked at Rey, a big, warm smile on his face.

“You know Rey,” he said, “we don't know who our parents were but our children will.”

“Our children … Finn?”

“Yes, Rey. Our children.” Finn looked at her, a confident smile on his face. Rey hugged him.

“Rey, will you ...” He didn't finish the sentence. Rey gave him a kiss on his lips.

“I will marry you Finn! I will!”

“Finn and Rey are so happy,” Amilyn said. “And I think I know the reason why.”

“Well Admiral,” Poe said, “you can be as happy as them.”

“What do you mean Admiral Dameron?” Amilyn said with a smile.

“Well, we had agreed a long time ago that the Resistance and the Galaxy comes first and everything else comes second... at least until we defeat the First Order.”

“That's right Poe.”

“Since the war is over and since we will have more time for ourselves, I think we should ...” He paused for effect and removed a small box from his pocket.

“I recognize the box,” Amilyn said. “It has Leia's wedding ring in it.”

“Since I gave Finn my ring to propose Rey, Leia gave me this beautiful ring for me to propose you. So, Amilyn Holdo will you marry me?”

“I will! I will! I will! I love you Poe,” and gave him a kiss.

It was a warm and quiet night outside the hidden Resistance base. For the first time, people were allowed outside it without permission. Many of them wandered outside observing the night sky, celebrating or simply breathing the fresh night air.

A group of people soon formed a group. They were Poe, Finn, Rey, Amilyn, Rose Tico, Q, Chewie and the two droids R2D2, and BB-8. Rey had told them to be there because some important people had a message for them.

Gradually, two bright figures appeared in front of them. They were the Force Ghosts of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda. Both smiled at them. Obi-Wan looked at Yoda and the latter nodded.

“Good evening everyone,” Obi-Wan's Force Ghost said. “I am glad you all survived till the end of the war. Except Leia Organa, I am afraid.”

“A great person and friend she was,“ Yoda said.

“You have succeeded,” Master Kenobi said. “You freed the Galaxy from the First Order and brought peace.”

“All of you respect and congratulations deserve,” Master Yoda said.

“Apart from us, there is another group of people who will talk to you,” Master Kenobi said. “And they have an important message to deliver.”

“Three important friends they are,” Yoda said.

The two Force Ghosts slowly stepped aside, to make room for the newcomers. Three new Force Ghosts started appearing next to them.

The first one was Luke Skywalker, perhaps the most important Jedi Master who ever lived.

“Good evening everyone,” he said.

“Good evening Master Skywalker,” Rey said.

Gradually, the second Force Ghost was formed. It had the familiar figure of … Leia Organa!

“Leia!” Amilyn said full of enthusiasm.

“General Organa!” Q said.

“I still can't believe I became One with the Force,” she said.

The third Force Ghost took shape as well. This time it was Chewie that left an enthusiastic growl.

“Yeah, it's me again furball! What did you think? That you would get away from me that easily?” Even as a Force Ghost, Han Solo hadn't lost his sympathy for Chewie.

“And don't ask how I became a Force Ghost Chewie,” Han continued. “There are three Jedi Masters here to ask!”

“I wish I knew myself Han,” Luke admitted. “Anyway ...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I undestand the chapter might be a big long and anticlimactic but I wanted to add it to give more depth to the story. In the Return of the Jedi (which partly inspired this chapter), the story essentially ended after the destruction of the second Death Star. I wanted to see something more there (such as Han proposing Leia, some analysis of the battle of Endor aftermath).
> 
> And Han as a Force Ghost? It was purely Rule of Cool (and Han is the coolest guy in the Galaxy). And more important of all, I never saw Han, Leia and Luke together in the Sequel Trilogy, something I try to rectify here.
> 
> In the next chapter, Han, Luke and Leia have a message for the Resistance, the Galaxy ... and us!


	31. A Farewell from a Galaxy far-far Away

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke, Leia and Han address the Resistance and the rest of us. 
> 
> Here is the farewell message.

“So here we are,” Luke Skywalker said. “After so much time, we are all together again … maybe for the last time.”

“After so many years, so many adventures, so many misfortunes, so many memories ...” Leia said.

“After so many good and bad things, so many laughs and cries ...” Han Solo said.

“Mostly good things, I'd say,” Master Skywalker said. The other two nodded.

“We had our war to fight,” Leia said, “decades ago. Like Master Kenobi and Master Yoda had their own war decades before us.”

“And we won it,” Han said. “But another one started … in your time.”

“We fought in it as well,” Luke said, “but it was mostly your fight and your victory. We were mostly supporting you.”

“And now the torch has passed to you,” Leia said. “To you Poe and Amilyn, Finn and Rey, Q and Rose ...”

“And to you furball,” Han said, addressing Chewie. “And to the rest of you … all of you who might see or read or listen about our story one day.”

“We are proud of you, all of us for all of you,” Luke said.

“We are happy we helped you, we led you, we inspired you,” Leia said.

“But now, you will have to keep going without us,” Han said.

“We can no longer fight for you,” Luke said. “We can no longer fight with you. We can only inspire you to fight for yourselves.”

“But know this,” Leia said. “We believe in you. We know that no matter what the obstacle, no matter what the challenge, no matter what the problem, you can always find a way to overcome it.”

“Even if you have to break some rules,” Han said. “Trust me on, I speak from experience.”

“So, farewell from us,” Luke said. “And... ”

“May the Force be with you!” Luke, Han and Leia said in unison.

THE END.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always wanted the Skywalker sage to end like that. Luke, Han Leia breaking the fourth wall and adressing all of us. 
> 
> The story is dedicated to all Star Wars fans. No matter whether you liked or disliked TLJ or another of the films, never forget: you can always keep what you like and discard the rest! 
> 
> I suppose if Luke, Han, and Leia were real, they would ask us not to dwell on the quality of a specific film but do something better with our lives. And even if a film is so bad, it will be more productive for us to do something about it like writing fan-fiction with our own version. Yes, we are breaking the canon here but trust me: Han Solo would be proud of us! (and Leia but she won't admit it!)
> 
> Special thanks to JTSkywalker and Pan_2000. Your comments and feedback have been very inspiring for me to continue writing and they've helped me develop new ideas and perspectives.
> 
> May the Force be with you!


End file.
